


Rocky Mountain High

by reyloanne



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Airbnb meet cute, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, College Student Rey (Star Wars), Devoted Reylo, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Love at First Sight, Luke is Uncle Toni, Mesa Verde National Park, Park Ranger Rey, Pregnancy, Snoke is Ivan Lendl, Tennis Pro Ben, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, US National Parks, Unplanned Pregnancy, and Rafa's arms, because my other big celeb crush is Roger Federer, inspired by my recent trip to southern Colorado, inspired by the cute park ranger who led our tour of Cliff Palace, pregnancy symptoms, the smut is here, we're skirting the M/E line in some places, which will be noted in chapter notes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2020-03-10
Packaged: 2021-02-07 21:41:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 29,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21464980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reyloanne/pseuds/reyloanne
Summary: Pro tennis player Ben Solo suffers a season-ending injury in the finals of the US Open, prompting a personal crisis that leads him back home to Colorado. He just may find more than he was searching for along the way in the form of a pretty park ranger named Rey.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 368
Kudos: 267
Collections: #CelebrateBenSolo - A Ben Solo Fan Event





	1. He was born in the summer of his 27th year

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dawninthemtn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dawninthemtn/gifts).

> I am back, this time with a multi-chap inspired by my trip last month to Southern Colorado, and by the cute park ranger who led our tour of Cliff Palace in Mesa Verde National Park, as well as by my love of tennis and especially Roger Federer. Hopefully it's not TOO much self-indulgent fluff!
> 
> Thank you to [MsDes/Sofondabooks](https://twitter.com/sofondabooks?s=09) for betaing and making the lovely moodboard! With an awesome manip - that is Adam Driver's head on Alexander Zverev's body. 😉 This story is SO MUCH BETTER for all the suggestions you've given me - _maraming salamat_!
> 
> Title from John Denver's classic ["Rocky Mountain High"](https://youtu.be/eOB4VdlkzO4) because I am NOTHING if not stuck in the 70s and 80s musically.

[](https://imgur.com/aB4wGN2)  


As he slid for the ball on the concrete surface of Arthur Ashe Stadium, Ben knew something was wrong. He felt a pop in his knee as he fell to the ground, and then sharp pain. He called for a medical timeout and limped over to his courtside seat. By the time the trainer came out, Ben’s knee was already beginning to swell. His dream of finally winning his first major title after playing second fiddle to the “Big 3” for so many years - and on his home court at the US Open, no less - was slipping through his fingers. 

After the long drought in US men’s tennis since Pete Sampras had retired, Ben Solo had burst onto the scene to revive the hopes of American tennis. With his aggressive, attacking style, uncanny ability to get to every ball, and beautiful one-handed backhand, Ben was expected to do great things. His coach, Ivan Snoke, a former champion himself, was known for grueling training that included 6 am sprints and post-workout ice baths. But he produced winners, and Ben was willing to sell his soul to the devil to get that extra edge that would push him into the top tier of tennis. 

He had grown up with his Uncle Luke as his coach. A pro tennis player in his youth, Luke Skywalker had made a good living on the ATP pro circuit but had never won a major title. In the era of John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors, Bjorn Borg, and Ivan Snoke, he just lacked the fire and drive to be truly competitive in that era of giants. But when Ben got old enough to devote himself to tennis, Uncle Luke was there to coach him on their 1,000-acre southern Colorado cattle ranch. Leia and Han had indoor and outdoor courts built, clay courts, the works. 

Ben and Luke worked well together, following the model of world-famous Rafael Nadal and his Uncle Toni, until one day… they didn’t. Ben became a difficult, oppositional teenager, determined to resist everything Luke asked him to do, no matter how small. He was angry, always convinced that his family was trying to undermine his progress. So when Ivan Snoke, the former Grand Slam champion turned sought-after tennis coach, sought him out and told him he could mold Ben into a great champion, Ben began to listen. 

After one training session when Ben was 16, when Luke had wanted him to run sprints again, everything came to a head, and the anger came pouring out of Ben like a lava flow as he smashed his racket to bits on the court. 

“Stop it, STOP IT, what is wrong with you?!” Luke yelled out as he ran over, shaking, face tense and red. 

“I’m sick of this! You’re not a part of my life, you have nothing to do with me! All you do is criticize, you never have anything good to say. I will never be like you!! I’m done, I’M DONE, I’m leaving for Snoke’s tennis academy!” Ben screamed with wild eyes. 

Luke’s features blanked as he struggled to speak calmly. 

“Ben, everything I’ve done, I’ve done it to help you succeed. You may think I’m just out here trying to ruin your life, but I can assure you that’s not the case. I have only ever wanted what’s best for you. But Ben, you have the drive, but you don’t have the love that you need to succeed. You need a connection to tradition, to family. Your roots are in this land that has been in your family for generations. Your connection to your family is the one thing that you’ll always have, no matter what. Ben, please don’t go this way.” 

But the break was hardened in Ben’s heart, and he drove off for Snoke’s Florida tennis academy the very next day. With Snoke’s help, he was emancipated from his parents. He broke off all ties and all communication with them and stayed in the hot and humid lowlands of Florida, and then traveled the world on the grueling ATP pro circuit, playing year-round in tournaments to boost his ranking. 

Ben became known as the “bad boy” of tennis, a resurrection of McEnroe and Connors of old, for his epic on-court meltdowns where he smashed rackets and cursed the umpire. 

And still the great mountains of the West lived in his heart and soul, and waited with eternal patience for the return of their native son, along with Ben’s own mother and father. 

They waited till the day his world came crashing down around him, on that hot August day in Arthur Ashe stadium. 

* * *

After his knee injury ended his tennis season, Ben had gone in for ACL reconstruction surgery. It had been successful, and luckily it was his left leg, so he could still drive. But tennis was out for him, for a good long while, as he recovered and rehabilitated.

And honestly, after 10 years with Snoke, Ben was reaching a breaking point. He still felt that drive to win, but he was hollow inside. Maybe it was more that he hated to lose, because then Snoke would scream at him for an hour about how worthless he was, and Ben would feel that worthlessness in his weary bones.

So for the first time in 10 years, Ben reached out to his parents. He called and asked if he could come home for a while. He felt the mountains and the great open spaces of the West calling to his soul. And he set out to answer that call.

Ben decided to take his time driving from Florida to his parents’ southern Colorado ranch. He would stop at all the national parks that he could along the way, and hike, camp out under the stars, try to recapture in nature what had gone missing in his soul this past decade.

He drove up to Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee and North Carolina, then up to Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. He continued west, every mile taking him closer to the beloved peaks of his native West. He stopped at Hot Springs in Arkansas, then drove straight across Oklahoma, the Texas panhandle, and the high deserts of New Mexico to reach Petrified National Forest and the Grand Canyon in Arizona. His route then took him north to Utah, where he visited the majestic parks of Zion, Bryce Canyon, and Arches.

And then finally, finally he re-entered his native Colorado. The landscape there, while still dry and mountainous, was so different from that of the brown & red deserts of Arizona and southern Utah. Fields of billowing green alfalfa and Timothy grass covered the landscape, and horses and cows grazed in verdant fields. The reddish-blue mountains rose up on all sides, with many over 14,000 feet.

He relaxed and breathed deep for the first time in ten years. And then, before returning home to his parents’ ranch, he decided to stop in one more national park: Mesa Verde.

* * *

Since it was October, most of the Mesa Verde cliff dwelling sites were closed for the season. But Cliff Palace, the most famous and iconic, remained open until October 19. Ben purchased a $5 ticket for the 2 pm tour at the visitor center at the park entrance, then got back in his car for the hour-long drive south into the park to the Cliff Palace site.

Ben was waiting up top with the rest of the tour group when a slim girl in a drab olive green and brown ranger uniform walked up. From what he could see of her, she looked quite young. He watched from behind as she talked quietly with some of the group, answering a few questions, and looking far too mousy and subdued for his taste, leading Ben to doubt whether this tour would really be worth it.

But then the top of the hour rolled around, and she began to speak, and it was as if she lit up from within. And Ben had never been so captivated in all his life. Her smile was dazzling as she spoke to them in a clear, warm voice about the history of the site and what the tour would entail. She radiated warmth like the sun, and he could not take his eyes off her, his body taut as a plucked bowstring, resonating to her frequency.

Jockeying for position, Ben stayed close to the ranger as the tour group made their way to the site of the cliff dwellings. He was paying attention to making his way carefully down the uneven steps, a task which was made more difficult by his still-healing knee, when suddenly they rounded a corner and there it was - a small ancient city hidden under the cliff, in remarkably good condition. The ranger indicated a spot for everyone to have a seat, just before reaching the actual site, and began giving more information.

[](https://imgur.com/FEMQqQd)  


“Cliff Palace is the largest cliff dwelling in North America, built by the ancestral Puebloan people over 800 years ago. Some of you may have heard of the Anasazi - the Puebloans are the same people, just newer and more correct terminology. They were farmers, and the car park that we just left up above is where they would’ve grown their corn, beans, and squash.”

She continued on, answering questions from the group with the same bright charisma and enthusiasm she’d displayed all along. After she finished, she led them all to the site itself. She talked about kivas (round underground ceremonial rooms used for religious or political ceremonies), why and when the Puebloan people had abandoned the site (around 1300 AD, because of persistent drought), and the digging out and restoration of the site in modern times. As she spoke, her eyes met Ben’s more and more often. At the conclusion of the tour, Ben stayed to ask questions of her.

“Thank you so much for this wonderful and very informative tour,” he stammered, flailing about a bit for a topic to prolong their conversation. She looked him straight in the eye for the very first time and gave him a huge smile, and Ben soaked in the freckles dusting her pert nose and light brown hair curling out from beneath her broad-brimmed ranger’s hat. He felt the warmth of the waning mountain sun shining from her hazel eyes. “What made you get interested in archaeology, and how did you learn so much about Mesa Verde?”

She spoke for the first time to him alone, and her voice was lower but filled with intensity and a lush, brilliant timbre.

“I moved to Mancos when I was 12, to live on my grandparents’ ranch,” she began. “I loved this area from the start - the peace and quiet and natural beauty were such a sharp contrast to where I lived before, in London. I felt an instant connection, a sense of belonging to this ancient land. I visited all the sites in Mesa Verde many times as a teenager, and when it came time for college, I stayed right here and went to Fort Lewis College in Durango. They have a great anthropology and archaeology program, and that allows me to stay home and take care of my grandpa, and lead tours like this one!”

“So you’re still in school?” Ben asked, wondering very much how old she was.

“Yep, I graduate next spring!” She looked up at him through her lashes, and Ben was struck with a feeling of rightness as she continued, “It was so nice to talk with you! Thank you so much for your kind words and for coming on my tour.”

She held out her hand and Ben took it, and he briefly tightened his grip as he felt the urge to hold on and never let her go. But politeness demanded he let go long before he was ready, and, with one last private smile just for him, she turned away to give her attention to others.

As Ben traveled the path back up to the parking lot, struggling up the ladders with his bum knee, brilliant late afternoon mountain sun shining down on him a little too-warm and crisp, he wondered if his light-headedness was from the altitude, or whether it was induced by a pretty ranger whose name he had never learned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Ben's route through the national parks](https://goo.gl/maps/XcFngoMfLkm135ts5) (This link may or may not work on mobile??)
> 
> [Mesa Verde National Park](https://www.nps.gov/meve/index.htm)  
Picture above taken by my daughter last month at Cliff Palace!
> 
> I grew up in the era of Connors and McEnroe, and I loved watching tennis then! Although I do prefer today's more sportsmanlike atmosphere.😘 *cough* Roger and Rafa *cough* [Ranking the Bad Boys of Tennis.](https://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/ranking-the-bad-boys-of-tennis-20150710/)  
My other stories:  
[Dog Days of Summer](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20061766/chapters/47512132), in which veterinary student Rey supplements her scholarships with a side business walking dogs. When there's a mixup with the scheduling of her newest client Buster, Rey walks in and gets an eyeful of Buster's owner instead.
> 
> [The Call of the Light](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20527862/chapters/48722465) by [Moongrim](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moongrim/), an amazing post-TLJ Episode IX fic which I am helping to translate from French! We're up to chapter 17 of 28 now - come join us!
> 
> [Bon Appetit!](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18595489) by [TazWren](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TazWren/pseuds/TazWren) and [Littlemistake](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Littlemistake/pseuds/Littlemistake). I consulted on cooking and provided the recipes for shrimp etouffee, vinaigrette, and Bananas Foster😍


	2. Coming home to a place he’d never been before

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben arrives at his Airbnb rental for the night to find an unexpected face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ben's Airbnb is based on [the one we rented last month in Durango.](https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/31308628)  
Our theme song for this chapter is once again ["Rocky Mountain High" by the incomparable John Denver.](https://youtu.be/eOB4VdlkzO4)  
Thank you again to [MsDes/Sofondabooks](https://twitter.com/sofondabooks/) for the beta on this! Your suggestions continue to make this better and better.

[](https://imgur.com/ul9NTFf)  


A few hours later, after driving through Mesa Verde and stopping at the few other archaeological sites that were still open this late in the season, Ben pulled his black BMW 4 Series Coupe into the driveway of his Mancos Airbnb rental. The autumn sun was setting, and the light was almost otherworldly, casting the low-lying clouds and surrounding mountains in a reddish-gold glow. A cutting wind blew through the river valley, setting the golden aspen leaves to frantic quivering, desperate to cling to their trees for as long as possible.

He punched in the door code and went in. It was a lovely mountain home, with real hardwood floors, gleaming chrome appliances, and granite slab countertops, along with huge picture windows with views of the mountains and river. As he was unpacking his things, he heard a knock on the door and thought it must be his Airbnb host, Rey. He was wondering what kind of a name that was, when he opened that door and saw HER framed in golden late-afternoon sunlight. His park ranger, his ray of sunshine.

“It’s you!” she exclaimed, recognition shining out of her eyes. “Fancy meeting you here! I never did get a chance to introduce myself at Cliff Palace. I’m Rey, and you must be Ben. It’s so nice to see you again, what a coincidence! I help my Grandpa Ben run this place. We live just over there, in the main house.” She pointed to another, similar but larger house just a few minutes walk away across a soft green field. “I came to make sure you got settled in OK. Is there anything you need?”

During all this, Ben had been standing rooted to the spot, just reveling in her voice and her expressive face. At her question, he roused himself to answer. “No, no, I was just unpacking, everything is fine. Thank you so much, Rey!”

“Have you eaten dinner yet?” Rey asked immediately.

“No, not yet, just had a few snacks on the road. Do you have any local places you can recommend?”

“Well, I don’t normally do this, but seeing as we’re practically friends at this point… Would you like to eat dinner with my grandpa and me? His name is Ben too, so I feel like it’s a sign.” She gave him a wink and the cutest grin he’d ever seen. “We have a homemade vegetarian lasagna in the oven and a fresh salad, and there is PLENTY. It’s just the two of us, you know. I love to cook, but I always cook too much and we struggle to finish it all. So, would you like to join us? I love feeding people. Please say yes!”

“YES,” Ben practically blurted out, jumping at this unexpected chance to get to know her better. “If you’re sure it wouldn’t be any trouble…”

“No, no trouble at all! I’ll leave you to unpack and freshen up a bit, and we’ll see you at the house in about 20 minutes, OK? Bye, Ben!”

Rey gave a little wave and turned back toward the house. Ben stood leaning against the door frame and watching her back until he roused himself with a start, hurrying back in to brush his teeth and hair and put on some slacks and a button-down shirt.

* * *

Rey burst back into her house, panting shallowly from excitement and something else, a breathless feeling of anticipation, of being on a precipice of some sort. She paused to catch her breath and press her hand over her racing heart.

“Grandpa, we’re having a guest for dinner! The man who’s renting the Airbnb for the night is coming over in about 20 minutes.”

Her grandpa Ben walked into the kitchen, where Rey was finishing up the salad. He was an older, distinguished-looking man with beautiful white hair and a full beard. Rey loved him and felt so blessed to have been taken in by him and Grandma when she was 12. They had rescued her from an unstable home with a mom who loved her and tried her best, but who was a slave to substances and a revolving door of men in the home, all of which made Rey feel unsafe, especially as she started to develop physically. It had taken some doing, but finally Grandpa and Grandma were able to adopt her, and Rey became an American citizen. She grew roots in this beautiful land that she had been unexpectedly transplanted to, finding a bone-deep belonging that she had never experienced before.

Rey would not trade her 8 beautiful years with Grandma Ruby for the world, until she had died suddenly of a heart attack the year prior. And Rey was so grateful that she was here to care for Grandpa Ben and keep him company in his old age. What would he do without her? And honestly, what would she do without him?

“Is that so? What’s this young man’s name?” Grandpa asked with a grin.

“How do you know he’s young, Grandpa, huh? He could be middle-aged and married for all you know!” Rey countered, a blush belying her words.

“I can tell by your nervous twitch,” he replied, laughing. “Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me, sweetheart. Now tell me what I need to do to set the table.”

Twenty minutes later, a knock came at the door just as Rey was placing the lasagna on the table. She ran and yanked it open, startling Ben, who still had his hand raised. “Hi,” she said breathlessly. “I’m so glad you came! Come on in, no need to be a stranger. I’ll get you a drink, what do you want? Beer, wine, water, iced tea?” Rey rolled her eyes internally at her ridiculous nervous babbling and took a quick deep breath to try to calm herself down.

“A beer would be great, thank you!” Ben walked in a took off his boots, leaving them at the door. He walked in to the appraising look of the older man, and said to him, “Hello, sir, you must be Ben? I’m Ben as well,” he added sheepishly.

Rey bustled back in with an Oktoberfest Lager from local company Ska Brewing and shepherded the men to the table.

“I’m sure you’re hungry from traveling all day, so let’s not stand on ceremony, just dig in! But I want to say how happy we are to have you join us tonight.” Rey dished up a big square of her homemade lasagna and some salad for Ben, peering up at him through her lashes as she handed him the plate. “I hope you don’t mind it just a little bit spicy! Grandpa and I like it that way.”

“No ma’am, I don’t mind at all. Thank you so much for having me! This looks absolutely delicious after almost a month on the road eating restaurant and fast food.”

Silence reigned for a while as they all dug into their food. Rey glanced over at Ben often and usually found him looking right back. A pressure on her heart and fluttering in her belly began to take hold. He really was SO attractive. Big, tall, broad-shouldered, with clothes that hinted of an abundance of muscle and an active life. His hair was black, thick, and absolutely begging her to touch those artful waves.

Rey remembered when she had first looked, really looked, at him during the Cliff Palace tour. He seemed in the prime of life, full of vitality, but she had noticed him favoring his knee as he made his way down the path. His face had drawn her like a magnet, with its unusual, strong features and air of reserve and sadness.

But now, here, at the table with her and Grandpa, his reserve was lifting, his face becoming more mobile, his smile more ready. He told them all about his long trip from Florida, and all the parks he had visited along the way. Grandpa, outdoor enthusiast that he was, absolutely ate this up. Rey could see how much he was enjoying talking to Ben.

“So Ben, where are you headed next?” Grandpa asked, after hearing about Ben’s pro tennis career, and the injury that had put it on hold.

For the first time that night, Ben’s face shuttered. “I, uh, haven’t been home in about 10 years. My parents live nearby. Mesa Verde was my last park visit; I’ll be heading home to see them tomorrow.”

After they ate dessert, a homemade chocolate cake, Rey walked Ben back to the Airbnb rental.

“Thank you so much for dinner,” he said, walking slowly at her side with hands stuffed in his jeans pockets. “You’re an amazing cook!”

Rey looked up at the nearly-full moon, and at what stars were bright enough to shine through its bright glare. “I love feeding people and taking care of Grandpa. I can’t live up to Grandma’s cooking, but I try!” she replied, wistfully, turning her face to glance sideways at him. “I’m so glad we could share it with you! When do you leave in the morning? How far away do your parents live from here?”

“I’ll probably leave around 10 if that’s OK with you. The drive to their ranch takes about an hour.” They arrived at the house, and Ben stopped, indecision showing in his whole frame. He turned to face Rey, intense eyes on hers in the darkness. “Would you like to come in for a little while?”

Rey wondered fleetingly what he meant by this invitation, but then decided she didn’t care. She was in a bit of a melancholy fall mood, feeling the passage of time with the falling leaves and the dying landscape, and the precious nature of love with her grandmother on her mind, and she reached out to grasp Ben and destiny with both hands.

“Yes,” she smiled.

* * *

Ben was 26 years old and had spent his entire life in pursuit of perfection in tennis. He had traveled the world on the ATP pro circuit and pushed his body to the limits and beyond every single day. He was quiet and kept to himself, and he had come into contact with surprisingly few women on tour or at Snoke’s academy. None he had ever caught his eye, until Rey. When he had first seen her shining with the sun haloing her silhouette at Cliff Palace, he felt destiny embrace him like a glove. And now, with Rey’s hand in his, he led her into the house.

They walked up the steps from the front entrance to the main living area, still hand in hand. The whole house was still dark, but moonlight streamed in through the picture windows, giving a silent, secret, silver tinge to the world. When they reached the top, Ben stopped and turned, reaching out his free hand to brush back her hair and then cup her cheek. Rey let go of his hand to stretch both hands up around his neck, standing on tiptoes to bring their faces together for a kiss. It was soft and close-mouthed at first, but soon opened up to bring them even closer.

Rey broke the kiss first, and Ben just stared at her, afraid to speak and break whatever silver spell of the moon that they were under. When she grabbed his hand and started to pull him in the direction of the bedroom, Ben resisted. He just didn’t want her to regret this. And he knew that this was something that, once done, would change him. He wouldn’t be able to walk away from this, from her. Whatever that meant for the long term, his life was about to change forever.

Rey turned a questioning gaze on him, but whatever she saw in his eyes must have reassured her, because she smiled a secret smile and tugged again, harder. This time, Ben didn’t resist.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3 will be up on Saturday**! I've also changed the chapter count from 8 to 7.
> 
> **Rey's homemade vinaigrette for the salad she served:**  
(This is my own recipe, adapted over many years of use. I don’t actually HAVE a recipe; I just eyeball it! So hopefully these measurements work.🙈)  
Finely chop or use a garlic press to press one large clove of raw garlic into a bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, 1 teaspoon soy sauce, and 2 teaspoons maple syrup, salt and pepper to taste. Mix thoroughly with a fork. Slowly add 1/4 cup olive oil, whisking with the fork as you add it.
> 
> (Unfortunately, I do not have a good lasagna recipe.😭)
> 
> Rey's Grandma Ruby was named in tribute to my grandma on my dad's side - although we called her Mamaw Ruby instead of Grandma, being from the south and all. She would have been 111 years old this year! 😬💕
> 
> Thank you all for reading!!  
My other stories:  
[Dog Days of Summer](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20061766/chapters/47512132), in which veterinary student Rey supplements her scholarships with a side business walking dogs. When there's a mixup with the scheduling of her newest client Buster, Rey walks in and gets an eyeful of Buster's owner instead.
> 
> [The Call of the Light](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20527862/chapters/48722465) by [Moongrim](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moongrim/), an amazing post-TLJ Episode IX fic which I am helping to translate from French! We're up to chapter 17 of 28 now - come join us!
> 
> [Bon Appetit!](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18595489) by [TazWren](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TazWren/pseuds/TazWren) and [Littlemistake](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Littlemistake/pseuds/Littlemistake). I consulted on cooking and provided the recipes for shrimp etouffee, vinaigrette, and Bananas Foster😍


	3. You fill up my senses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Theme song for this chapter is ["Annie's Song" 💕](https://youtu.be/RNOTF-znQyw)
> 
> There are not-too-explicit but explicit-enough descriptions of sex at the beginning of this chapter. Skip from the beginning down to "She turned over to burrow her face into his chest" if you want to avoid it.
> 
> This chapter is short, but the next two will be longer. Thank you once again to Sofondabooks for the beta on this chapter!

[](https://imgur.com/0D0cXqk)  


Warm sunlight streamed in across her face and woke Rey up. For a moment she was disoriented, wondering where she was, but then she became aware of the large arm over her waist, and the warmth pressed against her back, and she smiled, wriggling back. 

The arm tightened and Ben began pressing feather kisses against her neck and back as his growing erection pressed rhythmically against her backside. His hand moved up to knead her breasts for a while, alternating between them, sending bolts of arousal shooting straight down between her legs. He then slid it up further to cup her throat loosely as he sucked bruises into her neck, and Rey thought she’d burst from the arousal surging beneath her skin. Those hands had been a revelation last night: huge, strong, sure, and gentle, and she knew without a doubt that she was already addicted to the feelings they brought her.

Rey could hear his breathing growing ragged behind her, and she was overwhelmed with the warm smell of man and sex and Ben. As his hand glided firmly down her torso, she arched her back and slung her top leg up and back over his. Rey reached down to position him and he pushed into her, the smooth, stretching glide causing her eyes to roll back in her head with a groan. He set a slow but deep pace as he continued to move his amazing fingers right where she needed them. It was no time before she stiffened and cried out his name, and with a few more deep strokes he followed her.

“Rey.” She couldn’t see his face, but his voice was filled with reverence as he tightened his arm and pulled out of her, leaving her with a satisfying messy wetness between her legs that spoke of belonging and possession. She turned over to burrow her face into his chest as he pressed kisses into her hair, and they were wrapped in a warm cocoon of peace for a few moments until his next words: “Will your grandfather be wondering where you are? Will he be showing up at the door any minute with a shotgun, demanding my head?”

Rey startled and popped up on her elbow, laughing nervously. “I’d probably better send him a message really quick.” She jumped up, scooping up her clothes and phone, and headed for the bathroom. Just before closing the door behind her, she looked over at Ben, who was still lying in bed and staring after her with an odd expression on his face. Rey’s heart clenched and she smiled at him until his face opened up and he smiled back.

She stood with her back to the closed door for a moment, just reveling in the overwhelming feeling of what had happened last night and this morning. Then she checked her phone, fired off a message to her grandpa, and went to the toilet and to freshen up a bit.

When she came out, Ben was sitting on the edge of the bed, pulling on a shirt. His expression was vulnerable and open as he looked up at her. She immediately went over and kissed him soundly.

“I’m going to do the walk of shame and go home to take a shower,” she said to him, a mischievous grin on her lips. “Will you come over in half an hour and have breakfast with us? I promise grandpa won’t be waiting for you with his gun.”

“Yes, Rey, I’ll be there.” With a final kiss and a lingering glance and touch of fingertips, Rey finally tore herself away and went to let herself out.

When she entered her house, she found her grandpa sitting at the breakfast table, drinking a cup of coffee and peering at her over his newspaper.

“And where have you been, missy?” he said with mock sternness.

“Just out for an early morning walk!” Rey squeaked out and blushed beet red. “I’m going to take a quick shower! Ben will be over soon to have breakfast with us.” She looked up, suddenly uncertain. “You don’t mind, do you, grandpa?”

To Rey’s immediate relief, he smiled and got up to envelop her in a big hug. “No, sweetheart, I like Ben a lot. I’m a good judge of character after all these years on this earth, and he seems like a fine young man. If you like him, that’s good enough for me!”

Rey felt alternately warm and cold, strung tight and scattered as she ran off to take a quick shower. Standing under the warm stream of water, she couldn’t stop remembering what had happened last night and this morning, and smiling as she thought of Ben.

After dressing, she ran out to start some bacon, eggs, pancakes, and coffee, and it was about halfway finished when she heard a knock. Grandpa went to answer the door, and Rey flushed again as she heard his low murmur mingling with Ben’s.

“Here’s your young man, my dear. I’ll just be off to the bathroom and give you two a few minutes to say hello without an old man watching,” Grandpa said, chuckling as he walked down the hall to his room.

Rey and Ben stared nervously at each other until they heard Grandpa’s door click, then Ben rushed over to cup her face and kiss her. He smelled fresh and minty and clean, with his damp hair curling around his ears, and her heart squeezed at the rush of longing that ran through her.

“Would you like some coffee?” she asked shyly against his neck.

“I’d love some.”

Rey reluctantly disengaged to pour him a cup and bring her attention back to the food on the stove before it overcooked.

After Grandpa returned, Rey fixed all three of them a plate and they sat eating in slightly awkward silence for a moment, before talking about Ben’s plans for returning home, what roads he’d take, etc., as well as about Rey’s plans and school schedule for the upcoming week. Ben asked a lot of questions about her classes, and seemed impressed at all she was doing. Rey basked in the warmth of his praise and approval.

When they finished, Grandpa insisted on cleaning up and shooed Rey and Ben out of the kitchen to say their goodbyes. As they came to stand before the front door, Rey fidgeted, unable to fully meet Ben’s eyes. They had only known each other a day, and she knew it was silly, but… she was certain that what they had was special. She believed in this and in Ben, she really did, but what happened next?

Before she could work herself up any further, she felt Ben reach down under her chin and lift her eyes up to his.

“Hey,” he said, gaze intense and voice low and focused. “I will be back for you, sweetheart. We aren’t finished yet, not by a longshot. Not by a lifetime, if I have anything to say about it.” Rey bit back a sob as he continued, “Shhh, sweetheart, here. Put your number in my phone, and then send yourself a message so you’ll have mine. I don’t want to interrupt your studies and other work, but we’ll keep in touch all week as you have time. And I’ll be back on Thursday to stay the weekend. Deal?”

Rey grabbed his phone and did the best she could to enter her number, as her vision kept glazing over with tears and her hands shook. When she was finished and had messaged herself (and called for good measure), she handed the phone back and grasped his hand and the front of his shirt like lifelines.

“Ben,” she sobbed, suddenly panicked at the thought of letting him go.

“Shhh, don’t cry, there’s a good girl,” he murmured into her hair as he wrapped his arms around her. With one final kiss on the lips, he turned to open the door. “I promise I’ll call you as soon as I get to my mom and dad’s. OK?”

Rey nodded mutely and tried to smile reassuringly. What must he think of these waterworks of hers, this clinginess? She hoped it wouldn’t scare him off.

“I promise. Rey, this is only the beginning for us.” And with one final chaste kiss, he was out the door and in his car. Rey followed him out slowly and stood waving and watching until his car drove out of sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading!!  
My other stories:  
[Dog Days of Summer](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20061766/chapters/47512132), in which veterinary student Rey supplements her scholarships with a side business walking dogs. When there's a mixup with the scheduling of her newest client Buster, Rey walks in and gets an eyeful of Buster's owner instead.
> 
> [The Call of the Light](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20527862/chapters/48722465) by [Moongrim](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moongrim/), an amazing post-TLJ Episode IX fic which I am helping to translate from French! We're up to chapter 17 of 28 now - come join us!
> 
> [Bon Appetit!](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18595489) by [TazWren](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TazWren/pseuds/TazWren) and [Littlemistake](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Littlemistake/pseuds/Littlemistake). I consulted on cooking and provided the recipes for shrimp etouffee, vinaigrette, and Bananas Foster😍


	4. Hey, it's good to be back home again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben goes home for the first time in 10 years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Thanksgiving, American readers and friends!!🙏🦃🧡
> 
> Theme song for this chapter is ["Back Home Again"](https://youtu.be/bohTOHvz1G8) by John Denver. Shoutout to BonnieSwims and Scyfymom13 for all their suggestions from John Denver's body of work!
> 
> There is a very short description of Rey, uh, enjoying herself to a picture Ben sent her. If you want to skip it, skip from "They talked late into the evening" to "MONDAY."
> 
> Thank you once again to Sofondabooks for the beta on this chapter! You continue to make everything better.🥰

[](https://imgur.com/2uj9rxa)  


Ben drove home reluctantly that Sunday morning, dreading the first meeting with his parents in a decade, hating to leave Rey behind. He felt like his heart had been ripped out and left behind him, with her. But as the drive went on, he valued the quiet time to think and plan.

He was still under contract to Snoke and his tennis academy, so he’d have to go back, at least for a while. And of course, everything depended in some ways on how this meeting with his parents and his uncle went. Ben still loved tennis and had the burning desire to finally win the major that had eluded him for so long, but something had changed.

Being back in Colorado, and most of all meeting Rey, had rekindled in him that sense of place, belonging, and family that he hadn’t known he’d been missing until now. So he began to think, and as he neared his parents’ ranch, he had reached a tentative decision on how to move forward. How it played out in the end depended on his family, and on Rey.

As he turned into long driveway leading up to the ranch house, Ben pulled out his phone and dialed Rey’s number — he certainly didn’t want to start their life together by breaking his word to her. After a couple of rings, Rey answered.

“Ben, is that you?”

“Hey Rey, I just got to my parents’ place, so I’m calling like I promised I would.”

“Ben, I miss you already!” Ben’s heart hurt to hear how small her voice sounded.

“I miss you too, you have no idea how much. But you’ll be busy with school and work this week, and before you know it the weekend will be here and I’ll be back. Will you book me into the Airbnb for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights? I don’t know if your grandpa is quite ready for me to spend the night in your house.”

“OK THAT would be awkward.” Ben was relieved to hear a smile now in her voice. “Yeah, of course I will. Let’s see, on Friday I have class until 2:00. On Saturday I have a few Cliff Palace tours to give in the morning, then that evening there’s a big football game. I was planning to go with my best friends Finn and Rose. Would you like to go too? I’d love to introduce you to them,” she asked shyly.

“Rey, I’d love to,” he hastened to reassure her.

“And then on Sunday, would you like to take the train, the narrow-gauge one, up to Silverton? Have you ever done that? Is there anything else you’d like to do?”

“The train sounds great, anything to spend time with you. If you can book it for us, let me know the final cost and I’ll pay you back.” He heard her draw breath to argue, and said quickly, “No arguments, let me take care of you in this way. I have more money than I know what to do with, honestly, and I’d love to spend it on you. Please, Rey. Besides, you’re doing all the planning and tour guiding.”

“OK, OK, I’ll let you, I promise.”

“Thank you. I’d better go, I’m getting close to the house. But I’ll call or text you later. Please text me anytime during the week, and I’ll answer as soon as I can. I want to know everything about you, Rey.”

Ben and Rey said their goodbyes and hung up. As Ben drew up to the house, he saw the small figures of his parents and uncle waiting for him out on the porch. As he got closer, he was shocked to find them grayer, thicker around the middle, wrinkles beginning to wreath their eyes and line their cheeks. He was returning home as a man in the prime of life, and they were diminished, somehow. It softened his heart toward them. Maybe he really had needed to leave home, in order to truly understand the value of it.

Ben got out of the car and was immediately enveloped in a hug from his mother. When had she become so small?! His dad and Luke hung back a little, sheepish smiles on their faces, but when Ben went up to them to shake their hands, they each pulled him into big bear hugs as well.

The four of them spent all day talking, well into the night. They filled each other in on all that had happened in the past decade, from Ben’s life in tennis to his mother’s stint as the current governor of Colorado. His father and Luke had collaborated to keep the ranch running and to support Leia in her political career. Luke had given up coaching tennis after Ben left, too upset by the way things had ended with Ben, too unsure of his ability to connect effectively with young people anymore.

That evening as they sat around a crackling fire pit, drinking Lagavulin 16 Year, Ben felt confident that their relationship was once again on solid ground, and decided to share the plans that had been taking shape in his mind the last few days.

“I have something to tell you. I’ve been thinking a lot about everything, and... I’ve decided to make a break with Snoke. I want to come home. This has been coming for a long time, but the injury really crystalized things.”

Leia made a choked sound and grabbed his hand. Ben looked up a saw his father’s and uncle’s faces flickering in the firelight, serious and open. He then turned to look into his mother’s deep brown eyes, so like his own, and saw a shimmer of hopeful tears warring with a tremulous smile as she squeezed his hand even tighter.

“And I’d like to establish a tennis academy here, on your property, with Uncle Luke’s help.” Ben let go of his mother’s hand and turned to Luke. “What do you say, Luke? Would you be willing to get back into the tennis business with me?” He heard his uncle draw breath to speak, and he continued on quickly, “I know what a pain in the ass I was as a kid, and, while I can’t always promise to be easy to deal with, I can promise to always try my best and to communicate openly.”

“First of all, Ben, I’m sorry,” was Luke’s immediate response. “I tried to do the best I could when you were a kid, but I made so many mistakes. If you’re willing to forgive me, then I’m willing to give this coaching gig another go.” His uncle fixed him with his piercing blue gaze. “But why now? What’s changed? This seems so sudden.”

Ben felt the weight of all three gazes on him as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat, face hot and undoubtedly red. “Well, you see, uh, I kinda met someone. Her name is Rey…”

* * *

Rey wandered around aimlessly for a while after Ben left, feeling unmoored. Now that they were apart, the weekend seemed like a fever dream. Had she really just met Ben two days ago? Was she crazy for this feeling of belonging that she felt with him? Was it just hormones?

When she heard his voice she felt reassured, but alone she began to worry. How could someone like her ever be enough for him?

She also realized she didn’t know much about him, only what he had told her and Grandpa about being a professional tennis player, and that he had grown up on his mom and dad’s southern Colorado ranch. So her natural curiosity fired up, and she started to Google.

[](https://imgur.com/UHklm0Q)  


**“Bad Boy of Tennis Ben Solo out in US Open Final with knee injury”:** The video Rey watched of Ben’s injury was horrifying. She cringed every time as he went down like a puppet with his strings cut. After that, she went back to watch whatever matches of his that she could find online. Rey had never been interested in sports, and so had not known who Ben was. But she was so proud, and a little intimidated, when she learned that he had been ranked as high as world no. 4. And she was wishing Ben was there with her as she watched him controlling the court, his broad chest heaving and wet with sweat, muscles working as he chased down and smashed ball after ball. And the way he ran his fingers through his hair and blew on his fingers between points! Rey was getting a bit sweaty herself.

**“Black Sheep First Son Ben Solo spotted back in Colorado as Gov. Organa’s legislative agenda struggles”:** Rey had also never been interested in politics, and so, while she knew that Leia Organa was the current governor of their state, she had NOT known that her husband was named Han Solo, or that they had a son named Ben. This was more than a little intimidating, truth be told.

* * *

**SUNDAY NIGHT**

_rey: Ben, you never told me your mom was GOV LEIA ORGANA, don’t you think this was relevant info??_ 😒 

_ben: I was going to tell you, I swear. I just ...  
ben: I’ve spent my whole life in her shadow. It was nice to have some anonymity, to have someone like me just for me, you know?_

_rey: Was she in politics your whole life?_

_ben: Yeah, and she was always busy, always gone, when I was a kid._  
_ben: I felt like I didn’t have a mom like other kids_  
_ben: and I was a really angry kid, difficult to deal with, so my dad didn’t know what to do with me either._

_rey: How are things going now?_

_ben: Really great, actually. They can’t wait to meet you._

_rey: BEN I’m so nervous, your mom is like Colorado royalty. And you’re American sports royalty. And I’m nobody_ 😢 

_ben: REY you’re not nobody, not to me! Don’t be scared, they will love you. I know we’ve only known each other for a few days, but Rey I promise we will make this work.  
ben: I’ve got a little surprise for you right now, I’ll tell you when I see you in four days. I can’t wait._

_rey: Let me send you something to tide you over..._

Rey scrambled to pull off her shirt and leggings, and took an appraising look at her underwear. It was a matching lacy black pair — perfect. She considered taking them all the way off, but felt a little shy doing that… Even though Ben had already seen everything, she reminisced with a fond smile.

She got up and posed in front of the mirror in her bedroom, trying to decide on what image she wanted to project. In the end, she crossed one leg slightly in front of the other and lifted one arm over her head while the other held her phone up. Then she decided to try another one from behind, holding the phone over her shoulder, which came out so much better than she expected! It was cute and flirty, with her hip cocked to one side and her arms wrapped around herself. Satisfied, she pressed send — but only after double- and triple-checking that it was Ben’s number! What if she sent it to Rose or Finn, or god forbid, GRANDPA?! It didn’t bear considering, she thought with a giggle and an eye roll for herself.

_ben: Rey I almost had a heart attack when I opened that. God you’re beautiful_

_rey: I miss you SO MUCH!! I’ve been watching all your tennis matches and getting “worked up” myself_ 💦 

_ben: So you thought you’d get back at me with pictures of you in nothing but your underwear? (it worked)_

_rey: To keep you company through all the long nights without me. Return the favor?_ 😉 

They talked late into the evening, reluctant to hang up and break the intimacy that came from their disembodied voices sounding low in each other’s ears. Later, in the monochrome darkness of her bedroom, Rey couldn’t help touching herself to the picture he sent of his broad chest, sweatpants slung low on his hips, huge hand practically swallowing up the cell phone as he held it up to snap the picture. She remembered what those hands could do, and nearly burned out of her skin with want as she went over the edge with a stiff cry.

* * *

**MONDAY**

Rey was lucky to have the world’s very best best friends, Finn and Rose. They’d all been band nerds together in high school: Rey on trombone, Finn on trumpet, and Rose on the drum line. Rose was now majoring in music education, and they all three were part of the Fort Lewis College band. And Finn and Rose were now engaged, and planning to get married right after graduation.

She met them on campus for lunch on Monday, and was strangely reluctant to mention Ben to them. He almost felt like a warm secret that she wanted to keep nestled close to her heart, for her alone. But then her natural excitement won out, and she told them all about her weekend with him.

“Have you googled him yet? What do you know about him?” Finn was the nervous mama hen who always worried, especially about his two girls.

“Yes, Finn, I did last night, and it turns out his mother is Governor Organa! He has a different last name from her. And he’s a top-ranked pro tennis player. He was in the US Open final this year! I’m freaking out, you guys, I just can’t imagine what he sees in me, and I keep thinking that any minute he’ll wake up and ghost me and get back to his glamorous life.”

“Peanut, you are an amazing woman, and I am so glad you’ve finally found a man to appreciate that! I just hope he’s worthy of you. I’m withholding judgment until I get to know him, and don’t think I won’t be googling him like Sherlock Holmes looking for clues. And you can tell him that!”

Finn’s voice had risen higher and higher with righteous fervor as he spoke, and Rey laughed fondly and leaned over on an impulse to hug him tightly. She then reached her other arm out and pulled Rose into the hug.

“I love you guys so much! I promise I’ll bring him to meet you this weekend. Deal?”

They finished their lunch in companionable conversation and laughter, basking in the crisp October sunshine.

* * *

The rest of the week passed quickly, for Rey really was quite busy with all her schoolwork and other commitments. She was glad for that, because it kept her from missing Ben too much, or spiraling down into worry or doubt.

There had been someone staying in the Airbnb on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, so Rey spent the night before Ben came back getting it ready for their weekend together. Our love nest awaits, the thought with a fond giggle as she changed the sheets and placed vases of flowers in the kitchen and bedroom — an extra touch she did not provide to her regular guests.

She also planned a big dinner to cook for him and Grandpa on Thursday night: baked salmon, mashed potatoes, a big salad with her “famous” homemade dressing (that Grandpa loved), and a strawberry trifle for dessert. It warmed her heart to have another person to spoil, to show her love for in this way.

Rey thought she’d be too excited to sleep, but in truth she fell asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow, and dreamed of Ben Solo and his warm amber eyes and tight embrace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Chapter 5 will be up on Saturday!**
> 
> [Fort Lewis College](https://www.fortlewis.edu/) in Durango
> 
> Link to the inspiration for Rey's front and back selfies is [HERE](https://i.imgur.com/TgxqiXl.jpg). I found this on a public site selling lingerie, and the girl's face isn't showing, so I think it's ok to repost?? If I am wrong, let me know!
> 
> [Who are the "Big Three" of men's tennis](https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamzagoria/2019/08/25/how-the-big-three-of-mens-tennis-has-robbed-grand-slam-titles-from-a-generation-of-players/)? Sometimes known as the [Big Four with the inclusion of Andy Murray.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Four_\(tennis\))
> 
> The "'famous' homemade dressing" recipe was in the end notes to Chapter 2!


	5. Come let me love you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben comes back for one final weekend with Rey before he has to head back to Florida.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Theme song for this chapter is ["Annie's Song"](https://youtu.be/RNOTF-znQyw)  
**I know I've been teasing my own piano/vocal cover of "Annie's Song" for this chapter, but I cannot get my family out of the $!@#% house! And I cannot record it with them here! Thanks, Thanksgiving holiday! 😒😡😂 It's coming soon, I promise.**
> 
> This chapter really skirts the line with an E rating. For my friends who prefer not to read sex scenes, I'm sorry! For those of you who DO like them... you're welcome?🙃 The most explicit scene is at the end: you can stop reading at "The bus was not very crowded," all the way to the end. (There's another scene in the middle, but it's not as explicit - more romantic.)
> 
> Thank you as always to Sofondabooks for the beta on this chapter, and for the beautiful Rey and Ben aesthetics for this story that you can see at the beginning and end of this chapter! I love them so much. Your help and interest in this story have been invaluable!!💖🥰

[](https://imgur.com/fEzNJLJ)  


Thursday arrived to find Ben in a state of nervous anticipation. He’d spent the last few days getting reacquainted with his parents and his uncle, and breathing deeply and fully for the first time in a decade. The clean mountain air with hints of hay, wood smoke, and cattle wove itself deep into his lungs to expel the last remnants of stale city air. And the mountains themselves, presiding as they did with their eternal presence over patchwork fields of green and brown, wove deep into his soul to push out the last remnants of stress, anger, and confusion. His mind and heart were fully his own again, and he’d give them unreservedly to Rey this weekend.

He said goodbye to his family, promising to keep in touch to work on the plans that were already taking shape between them. Uncle Luke was outlining the practical details of starting up a tennis academy, and his mother was in contact with her lawyer about breaking the contract with Snoke. His father had promised to work on the infrastructure side of what the academy would need, as well as keep things running on the ranch and not let the other two spend too much time with their heads in the clouds.

“You know how they are, kid… You’re just like them,” Han had said with a crooked grin before pulling Ben in for a surprisingly robust bear hug. “I’ve missed you so much, Ben. I’m glad you’re back. Bring that girl of yours back here soon for a visit!”

“Thanks, Dad, I will! I can’t wait for you to meet her. She’s beautiful and smart and…” He broke off with a self-conscious cough when he saw the smirk and raised eyebrows on Han’s face. “Anyway, you’ll love her, she’s a real Colorado girl. And Dad… Thanks. Thanks for letting me come home. I know I wasn’t the easiest to deal with as a kid, and then the emancipation… Well, I’m sorry for all the hurt I caused. Love you, Dad.”

Ben squeezed his dad one last time before letting go to hug his mom and shake Luke’s hand. He got in his car with a final wave, and drove away.

Ben had every intention of bringing Rey to the ranch soon, but first, he was going to spend every minute of this weekend getting to know her intimately, body, mind, and soul. He wanted to lay firm the final foundation on which the rest of their life together was to rest.

He called Rey from the car when he was about 15 minutes out, and as he pulled up to the Airbnb he saw her standing on the porch waiting for him. He’d barely stopped the car and turned off the ignition before he was rushing out and scooping her up in his arms as she jumped up and put her arms and legs around him, pulling him in for a kiss. It was sloppy and frantic, and Ben finally pulled away and pressed his forehead against hers to catch his breath.

“Grandpa’s out for his weekly Thursday lunch and bridge club… What do you say we take advantage of this time to get reacquainted before he gets back?” she said as she unwrapped her legs from around his waist and hopped down to grab his hand and lead him in.

“Yes ma’am,” Ben replied, shell-shocked and trying to keep up. Rey opened the door, but then stopped abruptly, causing him to almost bowl her over.

“Wait a minute… It’s lunchtime. Are you hungry? Did you eat anything on the drive over?” she asked earnestly, turning to face him. Ben knew feeding people was her love language, and his heart clenched at this proof of her caring for him. But how could think about food when finally had HER in his arms for the first time in days?

He swept her up in a bridal carry and Rey threw her arms around his neck, laughing. Ben went in through the open door, kicking it closed behind him and making his way down the hall to the master bedroom. As soon as he set her down, they both started kissing feverishly while pulling each other’s clothing off. When they finally succeeded, Ben proceeded to let her know just how much he’d missed her.

* * *

Ben came over for dinner that evening, and Old Ben pretended not to notice the blushes and love bites that he and Rey were covered in, or the touches under the table that they thought they were being so surreptitious about. When he got up for a second helping, he even spied Rey running her foot up and down Ben’s calf with a coy sidelong smile. Ah, to be young and in love!

Old Ben knew times had changed, so he didn’t want to push the two of them too much, but he also didn’t want his little Ray of Sunshine’s heart broken. So he purposed to have a talk with that young man and find out what his intentions were toward his granddaughter.

He also knew a thing or two about "googling," so he had looked Ben up, only to discover that he was the grandson of his old classmate, Anakin Skywalker. He knew the name "Solo" sounded familiar! Anakin’s little Leia had married a man named Solo, and become governor of their great state – a very formidable woman. He remembered seeing her when she was in diapers, toddling around the house. 

So, after dinner — which Old Ben enjoyed immensely, he thanked God every day for having two women in his life who could really COOK — he brought the conversation around to Ben's plans for Friday, while Rey was in class.

* * *

Which was how Ben found himself facing off against Rey's grandfather at the local community center tennis court on Friday morning, after he’d seen Rey off for school and then gone back to sleep for a while. The old man played respectably for an amateur, hitting a pretty wicked slice.

The dry air and intense sunlight at high altitude left Ben parched and gulping down water after the match, despite the weather being quite cool. He sat on the bench in companionable silence next to Rey's grandpa, although he could feel the words hanging in the air between them. When the pressure got too much, Ben began to speak.

"Sir – Mr. Kenobi – I know you're wondering what I'm doing with Rey. I just want to reassure you that I care about her a lot, and I only want what's best for her, same as you."

"I know that son, I can tell by the way you look at her. I looked at my Ruby that way once. I still miss her so much every day." Mr. Kenobi paused to take a drink and wipe his face with a towel. "I won't deny I'm worried about you taking her away from me, though."

Ben looked over and saw a vulnerability in the older man. He was afraid to lose his last living relative, a girl who cooked and cosseted and made sure he was comfortable, a girl who brought sunshine to his sunset years.

“Mr. Kenobi, I’m working on a plan right now that’ll bring me home to Colorado permanently. I’m going to start a tennis academy on my parents’ ranch. My goal right now is to be back home for good by Christmas. After that, I’ll be gone on tour for a fair amount of each year, for however long I have left in my tennis career… But other than that, I’ll be here.” He ran his hand through his hair and turned to face the older man more fully. “I may take Rey with me when I’m on tour, if she’s free, but I promise that otherwise, we’ll be right here.”

“Have you talked to Rey about this yet? What did she say?”

“Not yet, but I plan to tonight. I, uh, didn’t get a chance to yesterday,” Ben said a bit shiftily, knowing full well WHY he and Rey had been so busy the day before – and much of last night, as well.

“That’s alright Ben, I fully understand young love!” the older man said with an amused smile and a firm clap on Ben’s shoulder as he got up from the bench and began to pack up his bag. He stopped and straightened, fixing Ben with a serious look, and then startled him by holding out his hand abruptly. Ben took it and found his hand held in a strong grip.

“Ben, I appreciate you reassuring an old man and listening to what I had to say. I love that girl more than anything in this world, and I just want to see her happy. I am so glad to hear that she won’t be going too far.” Old Ben let go of his hand and hefted his bag up to his shoulder, turning to go. “Come on, son, let’s get back and get showers before our girl gets home, or she’ll be rethinking what she sees in us.”

Ben could only follow in his wake with a fond grin.

* * *

That evening, after a dinner of homemade pizza, Ben and Rey walked back to the Airbnb. The wind was picking up with a cold front moving in. It was going to be freezing at the football game the next day! Rey shivered and burrowed a little closer into Ben’s side, shoving her hand into his back jeans pocket.

She’d been so happy to come home that afternoon to find Ben and Grandpa laughing and talking together. It warmed her heart that the two men she loved most in the world seemed to genuinely like each other.

They entered the house in silence, and Ben gave her a small smile as he moved away to go light the gas fireplace. He stood in front of it for a moment, staring down, and then turned to Rey.

“Come sit with me? I’m cold and need warming up,” he said with a smirk and a wink. They sat down and Rey wrapped her arms around his chest.

“Rey, I talked to your grandpa this afternoon about my plans for the future, and now I need to let you in on them.” He proceeded to tell her everything, including how he’d have to leave on Monday to go back to Snoke’s academy to wrap up his affairs there, but that he hoped to be back home permanently by Christmas.

Rey kept her head buried in his chest as he talked, partly to feel the rumbling bass of his voice resonating throughout her whole body, and partly because she felt unable to control her face and her voice. When he finished, obviously nervous and waiting with bated breath for her response, she took a moment to compose herself, then lifted her head with a deep inhale and exhale.

“Ben, I only need to know one thing. Are you sure you want me to be a part of this?” She lowered her eyes and put her forehead back down on his chest, nervous about the next part of what she wanted to say.

“Because I know it’s really quick, and we have a lot more work to do to make this thing work between us, but… I think I love you.” She felt him draw in a sharp breath, his hands fisting convulsively in her shirt. “I’ve never been in love before, so I can’t say I know for sure. But all is know is, you overwhelm me. You’re all I think about. I just wanted you to know that, I guess. And, I just want you to be sure.”

When she raised her head again, Ben’s eyes, always so intense, were pinning her with a heated gaze. He surged forward to kiss her with an almost feverish intensity, then drew back a few moments later, panting.

“Rey, there’s nothing I want more in this world.”

“Then come let me love you,” she said, surging up to kiss him, hands working on the buttons of his shirt.

* * *

Ben’s senses were overwhelmed with Rey. His face hovered in the crook of her neck, inhaling her scent of hearth fires and roses, as she straddled him, pushing his shirt off his shoulders and down his arms. He lifted his head and traced her soft skin and the fine bones of her face, skimming them with his fingertips, reveling in the beauty of her upturned hazel eyes and bright, shimmering smile. He claimed her lips with another lingering kiss, pulling on them as if to draw her into himself.

Her admission had moved him more than he could have imagined. He would spend his life trying to be worthy of her, his beautiful Colorado girl. She was home and love and mountains and life, all rolled into one.

He heard the hitch in her breath as he drew her shirt over her head. Reaching around to unclasp her bra, he drew closer to ghost his lips up and down the column of her neck. He leaned back and drew the bra down over her arms. Rey’s eyes were closed, head lolling back, as she arched her chest out toward him. Her breasts fit perfectly into his hands. He weighed them and then couldn’t resist bending down to lap at one, then the other. 

As a kid growing up in Colorado, Ben had always been a huge fan of John Denver, and one of his songs kept pressing itself on his consciousness in the wake of Rey’s last words to him. Ben picked Rey up and began to sing softly as he carried her down the hall:

_Let me lay down beside you  
Let me always be with you  
Come let me love you  
Come love me again._

He set her down gently on the bed and caught her eyes as he sang again, a little breathlessly: 

_Come let me love you;  
Come love me again._

Rey’s gaze was fixed on him, shimmering and open, and he could see her whole heart in her eyes. She lay back, opening her legs to make room for him to press in closer, and reached her hands behind his neck to pull him down to her in a charged kiss.

The silver-white light of the waning moon shone in through the window, looking like frost on the floor at the foot of the bed, providing just enough light for them to see each other as they spent the night learning each other’s bodies in every way possible.

* * *

Rey and Ben spent the rest of that weekend wrapped up in each other. he accompanied her on her Saturday tours at Cliff Palace, half marveling at the way her olive green pants hugged her frankly amazing ass, half dazedly proud of how dazzling and knowledgeable she was. People, and especially children, flocked around her as if drawn by a magnet. She always had a smile and a kind word for everyone. Ben felt anew how fortunate he was that such a luminous girl was his.

At the football game that evening, she and Ben walked up the bleachers to where Finn and Rose were sitting. Rey made the introductions as all their breaths puffed out in white clouds in front of them in the frigid air. Ben reached out a hand for Finn while looking him square in the eyes, shaking his hand firmly. Finn gave him a stern look, not intimidated at all by their 5-inch height difference, then broke into a toothy grin.

“Hey, Ben, glad to meet you! I’ve heard a lot about you. Rey has been my best friend for a very long time, and I’m glad to see someone appreciate her like she deserves. Treat her right, man, or I’ll be after you!”

Rose was bouncing off to the side and then shoved her way in front of Finn to wrap Ben up in a surprisingly strong bear hug, which Ben found slightly comical because her head only came up to his stomach.

“Don’t mind him, we just love our Rey-Rey! Ben, you’re so tall! And broad! Rey, you didn’t tell me he was so BIG! Look at these hands! Finn, take him to buy us some coffee and donuts!” Ben’s head was spinning at the endless stream of words and energy oozing off the little brunette, and he hadn’t yet had a chance to formulate a response before he found himself led away to the concession stand.

The two couples spent the game sitting in the bleachers laughing, talking, and getting to know each other. Ben felt surprisingly at ease, maybe because the other two didn’t want or expect anything from him. They loved Rey, she loved him, and so they accepted him without question. Finn was into sports and had watched some of Ben’s matches, so they bonded over that. Rose fixed him with a billion-megawatt stare and asked him a million questions as Rey listened, soaking in his every word.

On Sunday, they rode the famous Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad up to Silverton — the old mining town that, at more than 9,000 feet, was one of the highest towns in the US. They sat snuggled up on the hard benches, trying to keep warm as the old-fashioned train lurched from side-to-side as it made its way slowly up the mountain.

A little boy who looked to be about six years old was sitting with his family in the row ahead of them. When he turned around to look over the seat at them curiously, Ben realized he recognized him from one of her Cliff Palace tours the previous day.

“I know you! Do you remember me?” he asked enthusiastically, and at Rey’s nod, he proceeded to tell them all about his family and their trip, to Rey’s obvious amusement and Ben’s chagrin.

“Is she your girlfriend? Are you going to kiss?” he asked Ben, who’d honestly been dying all this time to kiss Rey, and maybe let his hands roam a bit more under their jackets, but was blocked by the talkative little boy. “That’s inappropriate!”

“Maybe just a little one!” Rey, laughing, gave Ben a chaste peck on the cheek.

“I’m so sorry!” the mom moaned at them, and to the boy, she said: “Martin, please turn around right now and leave them alone!”

Once the little boy had turned around for good, Rey gave a low, dark chuckle and ran her hand up his chest to kiss him in a much more satisfying way, before turning away to look out the window and take pictures of the beautiful fall colors along the river.

[](https://imgur.com/yMFV6rj)  


They spent an hour exploring Silverton, and then ate a lunch of pizza and salad at the Golden Block Brewery. The beers were amazing, but hit them a lot harder than they expected — perhaps because of the altitude? Whatever it was, they were pretty tipsy as they made their way to the rendezvous point for the coach bus that would take them back down the mountain.

The bus was not very crowded, so they chose a row all to themselves near the back, with no one anywhere around them. As the tour guide at the front began her spiel about the history of the area and the building of the railroad, Ben’s hands began to wander. He heard Rey’s breathing hitch and then speed up. The thrill of being caught, of being in a public place with other people nearby, was intoxicating. With his inhibitions already lowered by the beer, and Rey’s warm willingness, Ben slipped his fingers past the elastic waistband of her fleece leggings and inside her underwear to slip a finger inside her.

“You’re so wet, Rey. Does this turn you on, my finger inside you with other people just a few feet away?” She could only answer with a low, stifled moan, boneless and breathless as she was, and Ben nearly groaned in response. “You’re such a good girl for me, Rey. All this, only for me.” Ben continued to stroke and dip his fingers into her warmth, trying to keep his face impassive in case someone looked back, whispering filthy praise in her ear, until she stiffened and clutched convulsively at his jacket, letting out a little whimpering “Ben” a second later with her held breath.

Ben left his hand in place for a few moments more, then pulled it out and licked his index and middle fingers that had been inside her. God, he was about to explode. He needed her hands on him yesterday. Rey’s eyes darkened, and her hand slid down to the straining bulge in his jeans. Undoing his jeans, Rey pulled him out and stroked him a few times, and Ben truly thought his soul had left his body. Then, after checking to make sure no one was paying any attention to them, she sank to the floor and took him in her mouth as far back as she could. She continued sucking and stroking him with her hand as Ben fought a losing battle to keep his face from showing what she was doing to him. He exploded down her throat just a couple of minutes later, Rey smiling like a cat with cream as she swallowed it down.

He tucked himself back in his pants and zipped himself back up, then gathered Rey in his arms and pressed a kiss to her hair. They rode all the way back to Durango in contented, half-tipsy silence, listening to the tail end of the tour guide’s talk, but mostly just enjoying being wrapped up in each other.

[](https://imgur.com/8qtGgkY)  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 6 is about halfway written and will definitely be up next week sometime. I'm still thinking I can finish this in 7 chapters, but it may be 8. 🤷
> 
> The kid on the train is inspired by my kid. See the picture my daughter took of him sticking his head out the train window [HERE](https://i.imgur.com/WCqvfDe.jpg).
> 
> [The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad](https://www.durangotrain.com/). We rode the bus up, and took the train down (which was a TORTUROUS 4 hours, I have to say). No, I did not get up to _that_ on the bus, but there were relatively few people and the seats were quite large and private, so that gave me _ideas_.
> 
> [Golden Block Brewery](http://goldenblockbrewery.com/) in SIlverton. We did eat there, and the beer did hit me much harder than usual! But it just made me super sleepy on the way down. 🤣


	6. Leaving on a jet plane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben goes back to Florida... for now, at least

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Theme song for this chapter is ["Leaving on a Jet Plane"](https://youtu.be/SneCkM0bJq0)  
Thank you so much once again to sofondabooks for the beta!

[](https://imgur.com/nCwKKQn)  


Early Monday morning, Rey drove Ben the 45 minutes to the Durango-La Plata County Airport for the first leg of his flight back to Miami. She walked him into the small terminal and waited as he checked in. They spent the rest of the time before he had to go through security wrapped up in each other, Ben’s lips ghosting her hair periodically as they talked about little inconsequential things to avoid the big one on both their minds.

She was feeling his impending departure much more deeply than she had when he’d left to go back to his parents’ ranch. This separation was longer, his return was uncertain, and the distance was so much farther. What if he got back to his old life, and his feelings for her changed?

“Rey, I can practically see the gears turning in your mind. What has you so worried?” Ben put his fingers under her chin and lifted her eyes to his.

“I’m just worried you’ll forget me when you’re back to your international tennis jet set. I know it’s silly. Forget I said anything! I’ll just miss you, is all!” Rey turned Ben around on the airport bench seat and slung a leg around his waist as she began to run her fingers through his hair, sometimes scratching his scalp. She hoped the feeling soothed him as much as it did her.

After a few minutes: “Rey.” The feeling of his voice rumbled low, radiating from his chest back through her body. Her hands stilled, and he pulled one forward to press a kiss to the inside of her wrist, then turned around to fix her with such a penetrating gaze that Rey wanted to hide, but he wouldn’t let her. “I will be back. I could never forget you. You are my beautiful Colorado girl, and I will be coming home to you as soon as possible.”

Her eyes teared up for what seemed like the hundredth time that day, and she nodded jerkily. Ben looked like he was going to say more when his phone buzzed. He looked down and scanned the incoming message.

“Hey, I just heard back from my mom. She and my dad will come pick my car up from your place this coming weekend, any time that’s convenient for you. I sent her your contact info; she’ll be texting you soon. And Rey, don’t be shy. At least 90% of the reason for them coming over is to meet you. They could not care less about my car,” he said with a grin.

The surrealness of this whole scenario hit Rey all at once, and she began to laugh. “The GOVERNOR of Colorado will be texting ME! I can’t believe it!” 

Time had run out. Ben had to go through security or risk missing his flight. Rey walked him to the line and stopped, clutching his jacket. He brushed her hair back from her face before bending down to capture her lips, kissing her thoroughly, tongue exploring her mouth again and again.

He finally pulled back to rest his forehead against hers. “I love you.”

Rey’s heart felt fit to burst, and her eyes jerked up to his before she leaned in to press a kiss against the corner of his mouth and whisper:

“I know.”

She drew back with a radiant smile and kissed him again, quickly, then tore herself away. “Go! I’ll see you soon, Ben. Call me when you land!” And she stood there watching, and waving when he looked back her way, until he was out of sight.

* * *

True to her word, Leia texted Rey later that afternoon. She was absolutely dying to meet the girl who, her mother’s intuition (and eyes) told her, had completely enraptured her son, and was seemingly responsible in large part for bringing him home to Colorado for good.

Rey had answered her promptly, saying that Saturday any time would be fine, and they agreed on 11 am. Leia was feeling particularly triumphant that she’d managed to turn it into a lunch date with Rey and Old Ben as well.

Leia could see Ben’s black BMW sitting out front as they drove up to the address Rey had given them. They walked up and rang the bell. Quick footsteps sounded and then the door was pulled open by the loveliest girl Leia had seen in a long time. She had a bright but nervous smile on her face as she stuck her hand out.

“Hi, I’m Rey! You must be Governor Organa… And Mr. Solo. Please, come in!”

Leia was impressed with her firm handshake and the way she looked them so directly in the eyes. So far, so good, she thought with a satisfied inward grin. “Please, dear, call us Leia and Han. No need to be so formal! We’re practically family!” she said with a wink.

“Princess, don’t scare the girl off! Hey Rey, I’m Han, it is so great to finally meet you,” he said with a charming grin and kiss to Rey’s cheek. Leia rolled her eyes at the old scoundrel as she went around the two of them to greet the other person in the room, a man she hadn’t seen since she was a girl. Old Ben was much older, but then so was she. And she’d still recognize him anywhere.

“Leia!” He drew her into a big hug, and Leia was caught up in memories of her father and times long gone. “Let me think, I last saw you when you were 10, or maybe 12?”

“Whatever it was, it was a long time ago!” Leia laughed, pulled back to the present day. They spent a few minutes chatting before Rey gave her Ben’s keys, and they all agreed to drive over and meet at Chavolo’s for Mexican food.

Leia watched very carefully during lunch: she watched as Rey charmed Han, as she surely must have charmed Ben, with her bright smiles and quick intelligence; she watched Rey’s obvious pampering of her grandfather, who doted on her in turn; she watched Rey’s eyes light up and cheeks flush whenever anyone mentioned Ben.

And Leia listened: she heard Rey’s passion for her studies and her job at Mesa Verde; she heard Rey’s determination and strength in the abridged version of the story she told them over lunch, of how she came to live with her grandparents; and she heard Rey’s wistful longing whenever she talked about Ben.

While they were waiting for the check, Rey excused herself to go to the bathroom. As soon as she was out of earshot, Old Ben spoke up.

“Leia, Han, let me tell you now while I have the chance: I have never seen two young people crazier about each other than those two. They looked at each other like the sun, moon, and all the stars rose and set on the other. And I don’t like to tell tales out of school, but Rey was over with him at the Airbnb we manage on our property every night he was there, and then they’d come over for breakfast the next morning covered in love bites and blushing like teenagers.” He reached over to squeeze their hands, and Leia felt a wave of affection for the old man and his connection to her family.

“Ben even played tennis with me, and humored an old man by letting me take a few games off him,” he said with a chuckle. “And then he told me his plans to come home and build a tennis academy on your ranch, and that he wouldn’t take my Rey away too far. I like that boy. You two did good.”

Leia’s eyes misted up as she squeezed right back before letting go of his hand. “Thank you so much for telling us. Let’s keep in touch and keep each other in the loop.”

She saw Rey coming back and hurriedly blinked several times, looking over at Han to see him gazing steadily at her with something uncharacteristically serious in his eyes. After all they had endured with Ben’s estrangement, things had unexpectedly come right again. And it was all due to the young lady currently walking back up to their table. Leia could see what Ben saw in her. Rey’s beauty was obvious, but she had a special glow that radiated from within.

As they walked out to their cars after taking pictures with the restaurant staff, who had recognized their governor, Leia pulled Rey into a big hug and whispered in her ear, “We’re so glad to have you in our family, Rey. I hope we’ll see you soon,” to which Rey responded with adorable blushing thanks.

Before getting in their separate cars for the drive home, Han reached out and took her hand. “We did good, Princess. Ben’s coming home, and he’s bringing a new daughter with him. The daughter you always wanted, I think.”

Leia said nothing as she stared down at the ground, heart too full to speak. She just hugged her husband, hard, and felt a deep joy radiating through her as he brought his hand around to cradle her head to his chest.

* * *

It was hard to be apart, but Ben and Rey talked almost every night. Rey was incredibly busy with her senior year of college, and Ben was busy with things that were much less pleasant: rehabilitating his knee, and figuring out how to wrap up his life here in Florida in the span of two short months.

He called Rey after he put his condo on the market a week after he returned home, to let her know things had been set in motion for him to move back to Colorado.

“I wish you could’ve seen this place before I sold it. I may hate Miami, but this condo is pretty sweet, 14th floor with a beautiful view of the ocean. I just hope I can make at least a little profit. There’s been a glut of luxury housing in this area lately, and I’m afraid the bubble is about to pop.”

“Why do you hate it there? It looks like it’s all fun in the sun with beautiful people everywhere.”

“Okay, Rey, number one, you won’t believe it but it was almost 80 degrees here today, with 60% humidity. In November! And don’t get me started on the summer, when it’s hot as hell and rains every afternoon to turn the whole area into a sauna. The air is so dirty and all your clothes smell like mildew. And then there are the hurricanes, which are definitely getting more frequent. Global warming!”

Ben was getting worked up. He really hated Florida. “And number two, I don’t like sun, and I don’t like the beach. I hate sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere. And the girls may be pretty in an obvious way, but none of them can hold a candle to my beautiful Colorado girl, bred on fresh mountain air and sunshine. Why oh why did I spend ten years of my life here?”

“Awwww Ben, it’s OK!” Rey laughed. “You’ll be back in the mountains before you know it! What if the condo sells quickly? What will you do with all your stuff?”

“I’ve already started packing things up. Thankfully, I don’t have too much due to my crazy nomadic lifestyle the past ten years. If it sells quickly, I’ll just move it all into storage and stay in some kind of short-term rental or hotel until everything else is wrapped up. I should definitely be home for good by Christmas!”

“And how is your knee rehab going?” Rey asked him. “I wish I was there to make you some fresh bone broths. They speed healing because of the collagen in them!” Ben smiled to himself as he was once recognized her “love language” of feeding people.

“Sunshine, if you were here you would heal me with your smiles and kisses and your beautiful, warm, wet c—”

“Ben!!” she cut him off. He loved hearing the blush that was so evident in her voice.

“Okay, okay, calm down. Of course, I would love to drink your bone broths, too,” he teased. “So, my knee… It’s doing better! I’ve been going every day to rehab with the trainer here at the academy, a guy named Poe. The doc gave me an 8-12 month recovery window, and Poe thinks we make it in on the shorter end of the estimate if we work hard and smart. I want to be competitive at Wimbledon in July, and the US Open in August. And I plan to take you with me!”

Ben paused for a moment, then switched gears. “Enough about me. Tell me how school is going!”

They talked for a while about Rey’s classes, her plans for the next and final semester, Finn and Rose, Old Ben, everything from her life back home. The time grew late, and before they hung up, Ben decided to mention the call he’d received from his mom that morning.

“My mom said they loved meeting you on Saturday! I know we talked about it that night, and you were still a little nervous about what she thought, but Rey, she loved you. Just like I love you.”

There was silence on the line, and then Ben heard sniffling start. Rey’s voice was distinctly watery when she answered, “I don’t know what I did to deserve you” — a hiccup, then a sob — “but I love you too, Ben! I miss you so much!” 

“Please don’t cry! I’ll be back before you know it, and I’ll eat everything you want to cook for me, and I’ll taste that beautiful little p—”

“Ben!!” she cut in, giggling.

“...of yours too,” he continued, glad to tease her out of her tears. “I love you and I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 7 is basically done and will be up tomorrow (Saturday 12/07)! I also upped the chapter count to 10, because I don't know what I'm doing. 😬 I guarantee to finish this before TROS!
> 
> What are the [majors in tennis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Slam_\(tennis\)), also called Grand Slams? There are 4 majors: Australian Open in January, French Open in June, Wimbledon in July, and US Open in August. The Australian and US Opens are played on hard courts; the French Open is a clay court tournament; and Wimbledon is played on grass. The man with the most Grand Slams over the course of his career is Roger Federer, with 20. Close behind are Rafael Nadal with 19 (including an astonishing 12 French Open wins!), and Novak Djokovic with 16.


	7. The memory of love will bring you home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben & Poe's friendship blossoms over ACL rehab and enchiladas. Ben confronts Snoke, and finalizes his plans to return to Colorado for good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you sofondabooks for the absolutely invaluable beta once again! I was pretty unhappy with this chapter and the last, until you got your hands on them and made your insightful suggestions (and forced me to write more dialogue!). Special credit for this line of Poe's: "Ben, I don't know how to say this but, are you aware how huge a margin that is?"
> 
> Theme song for this chapter courtesy of Scyfymom13: ["Perhaps Love"](https://youtu.be/Ikb8qX-kyts) by John Denver.
> 
> _Perhaps love is like a resting place  
A shelter from the storm  
It exists to give you comfort  
It is there to keep you warm  
And in those times of trouble  
When you are most alone  
The memory of love will bring you home._
> 
> _Perhaps love is like a window  
Perhaps an open door  
It invites you to come closer  
It wants to show you more  
And even if you lose yourself  
And don't know what to do  
The memory of love will see you through._

After Ben returned to Florida, he’d gone straight back to the academy to work with the trainer there, Poe Dameron. He was determined to be competitive again by the summer 2020 Grand Slam season, particularly Wimbledon in July and the US Open in August. His drive to win was still there, as much as ever, but something had changed — he was now motivated by love, not fear. He believed in himself and had hope for the future, two things whose absence was so conspicuous to him in hindsight.

So Ben pushed himself in rehab, and he pushed himself hard. This meant that he and Poe were thrown into one another’s company often, and Ben was surprised to find a real friend in Poe, an outgoing, charming Cuban-American a few years older than him.

One day when Ben was feeling particularly discouraged at his progress, Poe came over to clap him on the shoulder and say, “Hey, man, let’s take a break. I can tell you’re about to blow a fuse there.”

“Shit, okay, yeah, you’re right. It’s just, I’ve always been so strong and in control of my body my whole life, you know? This weakness is so frustrating! Makes me feel my mortality, I guess.”

“Yeah, I understand that. Wait till you’re my age!” he said with a hoot of laughter. “Want some lunch? I happen to have a pan of homemade enchiladas in the fridge in the back, I’ll scoop us some and heat it up.”

Ben followed Poe back to the little kitchen adjacent to the tennis academy’s rehab clinic. The fragrant smells of red chile and cheese wafted through as the microwave worked its magic. Poe took them out, plated them with some chopped green onions and sour cream on top, poured them both a glass of GT’s ginger kombucha.

“It’s got live probiotics and electrolytes, good for the ol’ digestion and immune system!” he assured when Ben made a face after taking a sip. “Give it a try, you’ll get used to it. I love it — it’s a great substitute for soda.”

“You sound just like my girlfriend,” Ben said with a snort as he took a big bite of the enchiladas, promptly burning his mouth on the hot cheese. He sat there panting and fanning his mouth for a moment, then took a big swig of kombucha, which was a huge mistake as it just burned his mouth further with its carbonated acidity.

“Take it easy there, big guy! It’s hot,” he chuckled as Ben struggled to get the fire in his mouth under control. “So… girlfriend, huh? Is she a local girl? I’ve never seen you with anyone before.”

“No, she’s from back home in Colorado. I met her on my trip back there last month, and just fell for her, hard,” Ben paused to take a bite and chew for a few seconds, looking down at the table as he tried to decide whether or not to divulge more. He looked up at Poe’s open, friendly face and made a snap decision to confide in him. “In fact, I haven’t told anyone this yet, not even Snoke, but… I’m planning on moving back at the end of the year. I was ready for a change anyway, and after I met her, I knew it was time.”

“That’s awesome, man, congratulations! I wish I could find a girl who inspired me like that. Are you going to keep playing tennis?”

“Yeah, uh — please keep this under your hat for now, but I’m planning on opening a training facility with my uncle, out there on my parents’ ranch. They’ve got plenty of land. My uncle and I have the coaching experience. And I really think training at altitude, with the fresh clean air out in the country and no big city distractions, could be a real advantage. Or at least a change,” he added with a wry smile.

“Good for you, Ben! Thank you for telling me. I really wish you the best of luck with everything. It’s been great to get to know you these past ten days. I’ll miss you around here! I wish I could get away from Old Man Snoke. I really think he’s the devil sometimes.”

Ben let out a rueful laugh. “He sure was the devil when he negotiated our current contract! It really has me by the balls. He gets 20% of my prize money, plus bonuses based on rank. He made me feel like that’s all I was worth, like that was all I could get.” Ben’s face was burning as he admitted to his weakness and made himself vulnerable in front of another man.

"Ben, I don't know how to say this but, are you aware how huge a margin that is? I’ve worked with a lot of people in the industry, and no one gets a cut like that.” Poe’s eye cut to the side for a moment, and he took a deep breath before continuing. “And I’ve heard the way he talks to you. I even saw him slap you once. You don’t have to take that, Ben! You’re worth so much more than that. I’m glad you’re getting out.”

Ben was frozen as Poe got up and laid a firm, warm hand on his upper arm for a few seconds, then patted him a few times and went to scoop himself another helping of enchiladas. His insides were a riot of conflicting emotions, with gratitude winning out over embarrassment. He’d never really had a friend as an adult, which was pathetic when he thought about it. But he had Rey, and now he had Poe… and he was so very grateful.

They finished their meal and went to take a walk, then got back to work in the gym. Ben went home that day like he did every day: to Rey’s encouraging words, either by voice or by text, and to that feeling of wholesome tiredness after a day of productive and meaningful work.

* * *

Snoke had been giving Ben the cold shoulder ever since he got back, angry about the visit to his parents, and honestly that suited Ben just fine. Snoke had a new top prospect whom he was spending all his time coaching, a Brit named Armie Hux, and Ben got the feeling that Snoke was trying to play them off each other, make Ben jealous and insecure. In the past, it would have worked. But not now that Ben knew his own worth once again.

In the meantime, he thought about the logistics of how to extricate himself from Snoke. It turned out to be easier than he thought, because he had come to realize that the chains binding him were of his own making.

Ben lay in bed one evening about two weeks after he got back, thinking. He realized that what had bound him to Snoke all these years was an abusive dynamic, one in which Snoke had taken advantage of a vulnerable teenager to separate him from his family, even pushing him to take the explosive step of emancipation that would seal their total estrangement. He’d beaten Ben down for years, both verbally and sometimes even physically, and had made him feel a bone-deep sense of worthlessness, all in a twisted attempt to tie Ben to him.

Ben’s current contract with Snoke was ridiculous, as Poe had really driven home to him. At the time he signed it, he’d felt trapped and powerless, isolated and alone. But now! Ben felt a thrill course through him as the world shifted and everything clicked into place: this contract’s term only ran through the end of this calendar year, and he need only go in to talk with Snoke as soon as possible, and tell him he would not be renewing it. Snoke’s power over him was ended — he was finally free. He contemplated the foolishness of the chains with which we bind ourselves well into the night.

* * *

The next morning, he arrived at the academy and presented himself to Snoke’s secretary. She made him sit and cool his heels for 20 minutes, while he could clearly see Snoke unoccupied, sipping coffee and apparently doing something leisurely — was that the Time crossword puzzle? — at his desk.

When he was finally ushered into the office, Ben spoke up: “Mr. Snoke.”

Snoke’s steely blue-grey eyes looked up at him, finally deigning to acknowledge him.

“Ben. How nice of you to rejoin us after your little jaunt all over the country to ‘find yourself,’” he said with a trace of mockery hidden beneath a predatory smile. He pushed a folder over the desk to Ben, who opened it to find pictures of him and Rey — even one of them kissing outside the Airbnb, that looked like it had been taken by someone nearby with a telephoto lens. “I see you found yourself a little slut willing to put out while you were back home. I hope that’s all out of your system now. I’d hate to see photos such as these appear on the gossip and tennis groupie sites, because they’d tear your little girl here apart. If female companionship is what you’re after, there are plenty of willing girls who follow the tour around.”

“You…” Ben was blindsided by the unexpected attack, and struggling to even begin to know how to respond. “You were having me followed, and now you’re threatening me? How did you think I’d react to this? It’s an invasion of my privacy!”

“It’s not a threat, just stating a fact. And I am merely protecting my investment in you, Ben. Women and relationships are nothing but a distraction, one you of all people can’t afford.”

“You don’t own me!”

Snoke just stared at him smugly. “I do, Solo. No one else wants to touch you. You’re a liability with a hot temper and no real talent. You’ve burned so many bridges in the tennis community. And worst of all, you’re beginning to look like a loser with that bad knee. You know,” he said silkily, tapping his steepled fingers together above the desk, “Armie Hux has recently joined us here, and he has real potential. If you don’t want him to replace you” — here his face transformed into a mask of pure rage, eyes bulging and face red, and his voice rising to a spit-flecked scream — “then you need to get your head out of your ass, and back in the game where it belongs!”

Ben just stared at him for a full minute, shell-shocked, wondering how he had ever tolerated Snoke’s behavior toward him.

“Mr. Snoke, you’re fired. Our contract is up at the end of the year. I will not be renewing it. I will be leaving the area as soon as I can sell my condo and wrap up all the loose ends here at the academy.”

He stood and turned to go, taking the folder of photos with him.

“You’ll regret this, Solo. You’ll be hearing from my lawyers about the consequences of breaking our contract early. And you can be sure I’ll see to it that no one is ever willing to work with you again.”

Ben froze with one hand shaking on the doorknob, the other fisted at his side. With his back still to Snoke, he said in a low tone, “Mr. Snoke, you have made my life a living hell these past ten years, but you’re also largely responsible for making me the tennis player I am today. I wish you well in your future endeavors. But I’m glad to be free of you. Say what you want about me, but if you try to make those pictures public, you’ll be hearing from my lawyers.”

On his way out, Ben stopped by Poe’s office.

“Hey Poe, I just wanted to let you know that I’ll be leaving sooner than I’d planned.”

“Ben, man, I could tell this was coming from a mile away.” Poe paused, then bit his lip and winked at Ben as he said, “Mainly because I could hear Old Man Snoke screaming all the way down the hall! I’ll really miss you, man.” Ben was floored when Poe surprised him with a big hug.

After a second, he put his arms around Poe and patted him awkwardly on the back a few times, then cleared his throat and stepped back.

“The thing is, Poe, I was wondering if you’d ever consider taking a chance on a new tennis academy? I happen to know of one starting up that could use a great trainer like you.”

Poe looked up at him shrewdly. “Oh yeah? And where would this academy be located? You know I’m a South Florida man through and through — I’m not sure my delicate constitution could survive the cold and snow.” He cocked his head and crossed his arms across his chest, and Ben felt relieved at the twinkle he saw in Poe’s eye. “However, I might be persuaded, if the right person will take me out to discuss it over dinner?”

Ben clapped him on the shoulder. “Let’s go! Mexican or sushi?”

* * *

In the end, Poe decided to throw his lot in with Ben’s new venture, so the two of them spent the next 5 weeks helping each other pack up and finalize the sales of their homes. They spent a lot of time together talking about plans and logistics, and just getting to know each other. Poe occasionally dragged Ben out for a night on the town with other friends from the area, and Ben was secretly reveling in his first real experience of true male friendship.

And he talked to Rey every single night, at least enough to check in. Ben craved her like a drug — being apart like this was torment. She’d sent him a few more pictures along the same lines as the first pair of selfies, including a topless one that Ben had spent what felt like hours studying in great detail.

But one unexpected benefit of their time apart was getting to know each other better without the physical dimension of their relationship, wonderful as it was, interfering. They sometimes talked for hours about their childhoods, their hopes and dreams, their immediate plans, top 3 “desert island” books, and favorite movies, as well as more probing questions like:

_If you could hop on a plane right now, where would you go (aside from to each other)?_ \- (Ben–the Swiss Alps; Rey–Hawaii)  
_What’s the best meal you’ve ever had?_ \- (Rey–a Middle Eastern feast she'd had on an archaeological field trip to Israel a few years back; Ben–steak and baked potatoes cooked over a campfire)  
_What are you most afraid of?_ \- (Ben–that I’ll never win a major title; Rey–my grandpa dying)  
_Where is ‘home’?_ \- (Rey–you; Ben–anywhere you are) 

And occasionally they just had really amazing phone sex, which was still no substitute for the real thing.

He told her he couldn’t make it home until Christmas Eve, but he was secretly working with his family to surprise her one week early.

And so on December 17, Ben and Poe flew into Durango, where Han was waiting to pick them up in the baggage claim area. Most of their stuff had been packed up and shipped out on a moving van, due to arrive about a week after they did.

Han gave Ben a huge, affectionate bear hug and then clapped him on the back a few times, saying gruffly, “Ben, I’m so glad you’re home.” He turned to Poe and stuck out his hand to give the other man a firm handshake, clasping Poe’s forearm at the same time with his free hand. “Poe, it’s so good to meet you.” And then, as if to cover up any show of emotion, he reverted to his usual flippant manner.

“Well, boys, ready to blow this joint? The General is at home, ready and waiting to micro-manage every aspect of your new lives. Just do enough to keep her happy, and otherwise do what you want!” He clapped an arm around each of their shoulders, and laughed uproariously at his own cleverness. Ben just rolled his eyes.

“And Ben, you’ve got a hot date with a beautiful girl waiting for you! Leia talked to Old Ben, and they told Rey that she’s coming over tonight for a family dinner with the two of us to plan out a surprise party for YOU on Christmas Eve. She’ll be there in a couple of hours, so you have just enough time to get settled in and cleaned up. And please, Ben, the two of you need to keep it down tonight! Your girl is already beautiful, but the rest of us need our beauty sleep.”

Ben blushed to the tips of his ears, while the other two dissolved in laughter. But he grabbed his bag all the same and said, “Come on, let’s go!” to the renewed laughter of the other two. He didn’t care – Rey was so close he could almost taste her, and the last little bit of the wait was killing him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ch. 8 will be up sometime next week, with their reunion, and all the Christmas fluff! And I will finish this before TROS if it kills me.😂 I'm still thinking we'll finish in 10 chapters.
> 
> [GT's Kombucha](https://gtslivingfoods.com/our-offerings/kombucha/)
> 
> [A great article about the business of tennis coaching](https://www.forbes.com/2008/08/22/brad-gilbert-coaching-tennisbiz08-biz-sports-cx_bg_0822coach.html)


	8. Love, ageless and evergreen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A reunion, plus ALL the Christmas fluff!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is especially dedicated to [dawninthemtn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dawninthemtn/), for reasons she knows. Also, because I just love all her sweet, creative, well-written, low-angst, devoted Reylo stories! Check them out on her AO3 page linked above.
> 
> Thank you as always to sofondabooks for the beta, Leia's scrapbook page for this chapter (the pic of aged Ewan as Grandpa Ben is perfection!), and for the song inspiration and title for this chapter: the beautiful love song ["Evergreen"](https://youtu.be/L7AIBlzCluc) from the movie "A Star is Born."
> 
> Thanks to tlcat06 for the suggestion of Rey and Ben burning the hot cocoa, as well as all your support of this story. And a shoutout to kylorenjen for the idea of Kylo hugging his mother on Tatooine at the end of the movie - here's hoping you're right!

On the evening of December 17, Rey was driving over to the Organa-Solo ranch for dinner, listening to a Christmas classics playlist streaming from her phone to her car speakers and singing at the top of her lungs. She’d taken her last final that afternoon, Ben would be home in a week, and she was feeling all keyed up. The wait was killing her, but at least tonight she’d be a little closer to Ben as she spent time with his parents, planning a surprise party for him and Poe when they came home on Christmas Eve.

It was a little hard to find the ranch in the dark, but, guided by GPS and Han’s more detailed directions, she finally pulled into the long driveway and made her way up to the front of the house. The front porch light was on as she walked up the steps and rang the doorbell. She heard footsteps, and then the door swung open to reveal Leia and Han standing there. 

“Rey, dear, please come in!” Leia reached out for her hand to pull her inside and into a motherly hug. Rey then turned to hug Han, who embraced her with a warm “Hey, kid” and a kiss on the head. As she drew back, she noticed two new faces over his shoulder, hanging back in the living room. The men walked up, and the older one held out his hand, which Rey took, Han’s hands still on her shoulders.

“Rey, it’s so nice to finally meet you. I’m Luke, Ben’s crazy uncle.”

“Oh, Mr. Skywalker! It’s so nice to meet you too.”

She then turned expectantly to the younger man, who took her hand in turn.

“Hi, I’m Poe.”

“I’m Rey,” she stammered out, confused and flustered and unsure what to think of this unexpected turn of events.

“I know,” he returned with a huffed laugh.

Just then she heard the front door swing shut behind her, and her heartbeat accelerated to an uneven, racing staccato as Han used his hands on her shoulders to turn her back around towards the door, where she saw Ben standing there in front of the closed door, smiling. He looked so good in black jeans and a tight black sweater, seemingly even bigger than she remembered. She was semi-frozen in shock, breathing rapid, almost unable to believe her eyes.

“Rey.” His wine-dark voice jolted her into action, and she ran and threw herself at him, hugging him tightly and burying her face in his chest. He was really here! Overwhelmed at seeing him and hearing his voice again after two long months of missing him, Rey burst into tears, much to her embarrassment.

“Shhh, Rey,” his low voice hummed through his chest and resonated through her body. She got her tears under control after a few seconds and, still clutching Ben tightly, turned around in his grasp to wipe her eyes and address the other four people still in the entryway, assembled around them and watching their reunion with fond smiles.

“I’m so sorry! I don’t know what’s come over me!” she muttered with a watery smile.

“Are you kidding?! Rey, this one here” — he jerked his thumb toward Leia, who rolled her eyes — “has been absolutely beside herself waiting for this! You gave her exactly the Christmas show she wanted to see.”

“Hush, you! Ben, why don’t you take Rey for a little tour of the house and let her get settled a bit while we finish getting dinner ready.”

Ben took her toward the back of the house, showing her the living room before taking her upstairs.

“I’ll take you through the rest of the house later. Most of the bedrooms and living spaces are downstairs, but as a teen my room was up here, because the game room and home gym are up here too. More space for a gawky, moody teenage boy to spread out.”

He led her into his bedroom, and Rey was entranced by the glimpse into younger Ben. A king-sized bed stood in the middle of the room, and around it were a desk and various pieces of dark wood furniture. She laughed a bit at the evidence of emo Ben she spied in the posters still hanging on the wall: My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, and Panic! At the Disco, as well as movie posters for Lord of the Rings, Kill Bill, and Batman Begins.

When she brought her eyes back to his after her silent perusal of his room, she was jolted back to the present by the liquid heat she saw in his eyes, which looked black in the dim light.

“Like what you see?” He had his arms crossed over his chest, which just served to emphasize his huge shoulders and biceps, and Rey couldn’t help walking over to him and running her hands up his arms before pushing him down to a seated position on the bed and then straddling him, hands on his shoulders. She gave him a few lingering, open-mouthed kisses on his plush lips before burying her face in his neck and kissing him there, pausing to suck bruises now and then.

“I can’t believe you’re really here, Ben, I missed you so much,” she murmured as her hands smoothed up his chest to wind around his neck and into his hair.

“I’m here for good, Rey. I’m never leaving again.” His words soothed a hole in heart that she only realized had been there by its absence now. They kissed for a few minutes longer before Rey reluctantly pulled back.

“As much as I would love to continue this, I don’t want to keep your family and Poe waiting. Do you think we could pick up where we left off later? You could come home with me, but I hate to take you away from your parents right after you just got here.” Just the thought of having to leave him that night made her breath come faster and her hands instinctively clutch at his shirt.

But Ben just beamed at her and pulled her into the adjoining bathroom. There, on the counter, were all the regular toiletries that she used, alongside a pile of obviously brand-new, neatly-folded items of clothing: Christmas pajamas, panties, and what looked like a pair of yoga pants and a long-sleeved T-shirt.

“What is this?” she whispered in wonder.

“My mom had your grandpa take pictures of all the products you had in your bathroom at home, then she went out and bought them for you. She knew you wouldn’t want to leave tonight, not to mention it really isn’t safe to drive back alone so late at night, and she wanted you to feel comfortable staying here.”

Rey blushed at the obvious implications of what her grandpa and Ben’s parents knew they’d probably be getting up to, but her relief at not being separated from Ben that night outweighed everything else. She grabbed Ben’s hand.

“At least she didn’t buy me any lingerie!” she giggled. “Come on, the sooner we go down and mingle, the sooner we can go to bed!” 

* * *

Poe saw Ben and Rey emerge from the upper floor of the house, and it was immediately obvious what they’d been doing. _Good for him_, Poe thought, with a twinge of melancholy. He’d had girlfriends before, but he hadn’t found the right one yet. He had wondered, back in Florida, what kind of girl could capture a man so fully that he’d upend his life for her like Ben was doing. But once he saw Rey, and saw them together, he understood.

Well, in a secondhand sort of way, Rey had upended his life too, and Poe was old enough to know that major change like this was always accompanied by second thoughts, loneliness, and sometimes regret as a person adjusted to the change. He’d been welcomed warmly by Han and Leia, who had given him a bedroom to live in rent-free without a second thought. And he was looking forward to helping Ben and his uncle build the new academy. It was just… hard to be in the midst of all these bonds of family and love, especially during the holidays, without feeling a little left out.

During dinner, they’d all talked about plans for the holidays, and Leia had mentioned that her assistant back in Denver was also alone during the holidays, so she would be joining them the next day to stay in the other extra bedroom adjoining Poe’s. Leia had a twinkle in her eye and was watching him as she announced this news, so Poe wondered if there was matchmaking going on. But the news gave him some hope that, at the very least, he wouldn’t be a third wheel on all Rey and Ben’s outings. He wondered what this girl was like. Her name was unusual… Kaydel. He liked the sound of it.

After dinner, they all moved into the living room to drink and talk. The room was dark except for a beautifully multicolored Tiffany lamp that was giving off a warm glow from its perch on top of the piano, and a fire that was already burning in the fireplace. Leia walked around lighting a few strategically-placed candles to create a cozy and intimate atmosphere. Earlier, Poe had been excited to see the beautiful black Yamaha grand piano, and now he sat down at the keys.

“Who here plays?” he asked the group.

“Ben took lessons as a kid, but I’m not sure if he still remembers anything. That was a waste, I’m afraid,” Leia grumbled. Ben just grinned and shrugged sheepishly, his arm around Rey as she nestled tight into his side on the couch.

“Do you have a book of Christmas carols around here anywhere?” Poe wondered, and when Leia pulled out an old church hymnal, he turned to the Christmas section and began to play.

Rey began to sing, and soon Leia had pulled out a few extra books and everyone was gathered around the piano, singing until their voices were hoarse. Poe looked over to see Ben place a soft kiss on Rey’s forehead, whisper something in her ear, and then lead her back upstairs. He drew his gaze back to find Leia watching him.

“I hope you’ll make yourself at home here with us, Poe. I know you’ve had a long day, so don’t let us keep you up. Besides, it’s 10 pm here, but to your body it’s still midnight! A good night’s sleep will make all the difference in the world.” She smiled and then leaned down to hug him as he still sat there on the piano bench. “Forgive an old woman who needs to get herself to bed. We’ll see you in the morning! The Keurig is on the kitchen counter, creamer’s in the fridge. Feel free to help yourself to anything in the kitchen if you get up earlier than we do! Kaydel will be here in the morning, then we’ll send you young folks out to pick a tree for us!”

Han clapped him on the shoulder and then left his hand pressed there for a moment. “Thanks for taking a chance on Ben, kid. We’re so glad you’re here.” He moved to follow his wife in the direction of the master suite.

Poe suddenly felt that everything was going to be alright.

* * *

Kaydel arrived at 10 am the next morning, which surprised Ben until he learned that she’d been staying in the resort town of Pagosa Springs for the past few days, which was a much closer drive than Denver.

Han had bought a Christmas tree cutting permit for the San Juan National Forest, so after an early lunch, the four young people had hopped in Han’s pickup truck and set out for the two-hour drive into the mountains. They’d spent about an hour searching before finding the perfect white fir tree to cut down and bring back.

Now, happily ensconced back in the warmth of home, surrounded by friends and family, Ben was the most content he’d been in a long time. Before, he’d always felt internal and external pressure to do more, to be more, to live up to some impossible standard that was always moving ever higher. Now, for the first time in his whole life that he could remember, he felt a bone-deep sense of rightness and rest, and it was all thanks to the girl currently lit up like one of those megawatt Christmas light displays as she laughed at something Finn said, all the while wrapping a strand of multicolored lights around the tree they’d brought home.

Finn and Rose had joined them to decorate the tree, eat pizza, drink hot chocolate, and watch Christmas movies. Ben could tell they’d both been intimidated by Governor Organa at first, until she had laughed her throaty laugh, squeezed their faces, and kissed them both soundly on their cheeks.

“Han and I are going out, kids!” she now yelled from her place at the front door, now dressed in a sparkling holiday gown. “We’ve got a local Christmas fundraising dinner to attend. Don’t wait up!”

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” Han added with a smirk, prompting Leia to yank him out the door with a stern “Han, honestly!” as the young people inside all laughed.

Rey had finished stringing the lights. “Plug it in, let’s see how it looks!” she called out. When everything worked, she let out a cheer and came over to slide an arm around his waist. She didn’t seem to be able to go long without touching him, not that Ben was complaining in the slightest.

Rey was vibrating with excitement as Kaydel opened the storage box full of Christmas ornaments and began pulling them out. Ben was surprised to see that his mom had kept all the homemade ornaments he’d made over the years, dating all the way back to preschool.

He remembered that they’d also had a family tradition of buying a personalized ornament every year, with their names and the year engraved on it. Ben’s heart clenched suddenly when he saw that his mom had continued buying these ornaments and including his name on them, one for every year that he was away.

He hadn’t realized he had tears in his eyes as he pulled out the ornaments one by one, until he felt the wetness when Rey reached over and wiped the corners of his eyes with her thumbs. She kissed the side of his mouth and stood smiling into his eyes, her own shimmering, until something in the ornament box caught her attention. 

Ben blushed as Rey picked up one featuring a photo of him as a 5-year-old, face round, dressed in a button-down dress shirt and tie, his regrettable ears sticking out, as always.

“You were the most precious little boy, Ben! I just want to hug you and kiss you and squeeze your little face!” she exclaimed.

“You can do that now, if you like,” he retorted, leaning down to kiss her thoroughly.

“Get a room!” Rose cackled as the kiss went on for a bit longer than was strictly polite.

“I can see when we’re not wanted! Come on, Rey, let’s go make the hot chocolate and leave the decorating to this bunch.” Ben just wanted to get her alone in the kitchen so he could kiss her some more, anyway.

They started the hot chocolate on the stove, then stood kissing, hands roaming, lost in each other, until Rey pulled back.

“Do you smell something burning?” She saw that the milk had come to a rolling boil and lunged for the stove, turning it off. After stirring it a bit, they were able to salvage it, and they poured it into mugs, added some mini marshmallows, and brought it out on a tray for everyone.

The six young people sat talking, decorating, drinking, and watching movies long into the night.

* * *

They all spent the week doing winter activities together: skiing at Purgatory, ice skating, movies, hot chocolate… the works. Rose and Finn often joined them, when they weren’t busy with their own families. Rey had noticed Poe and Kaydel sitting closer and closer to each other with every passing day, along with increasing little touches here and there to hands or backs or arms.

On Christmas Eve, Han and Leia, Poe and Kaydel, and Rey and Ben had all joined Old Ben for a Service of Lessons and Carols at the Mancos United Methodist Church, where he was a member. Afterwards, they went back to his and Rey’s Mancos home for a Christmas Eve feast she had prepared. Ham, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, creamy cucumber salad, cranberry sauce, homemade rolls, and for dessert, pecan pie with ice cream. Add in the homemade eggnog, which she had made with a lovely strong dark rum, and everyone was sitting around in a festive postprandial haze.

Luckily they had Leia serving as the designated driver, and she roused everyone enough to drive them all back to the Organa-Solo ranch. Everyone except Rey and Ben, who were staying in the empty Airbnb that night. Rey had a special surprise planned for him, just as soon as she could rouse herself from her cozy stupor on the couch, curled into Ben’s side in front of the lovely crackling fire.

Old Ben came in to shoo them out. “Go on, you’d better get up before you fall asleep right here on the couch. I’ll clean up the dinner dishes, don’t you worry about a thing.”

Ben clambered to his feet, and a grumbling Rey let him pull her up by the hand. She walked over to give the older man a hug and a kiss on his bearded cheek.

“Merry Christmas, Grandpa! I love you so much. We’ll see you in the morning!”

“Merry Christmas, sweet girl. I love you too. What would this old man do without you?” He patted her cheek. “And you, young man, thank you for sharing your Christmas with us this year!” He reached over to shake Ben’s hand.

“Merry Christmas, sir,” Ben said in return, and then Rey felt his supporting arms guiding her out the door and across the field to the Airbnb property. She was still so sleepy and tipsy, but the cold air on the short walk served to wake her up a bit.

They unlocked the door and walked into silvery moonlit darkness, so reminiscent of their first night together a little over two months ago. They walked up the short stairs from the entryway to the living room, and stopped at the exact spot at the top where they’d shared that first life-altering kiss. Rey had known from the beginning that they were meant to be together, and her surety was bone-deep now.

The silence was weighted as Ben reached out to caress her cheek, and then use his fingers to trace her eyebrows, her cheekbones, her nose, her lips, her jawline, the slope of her neck. The light touches made Rey almost lightheaded with want, her eyes fluttering closed and her head lolling back. When Ben bent down to kiss her neck, her knees buckled and she had to clutch onto his shoulders for support. His big, cold hands roaming up under her sweater on her bare skin shocked Rey back out of her lust-addled state.

“Wait, wait, I have a Christmas present for you. Wait right here! I’ll just be a minute!” She laughed at Ben’s stunned expression as she stole one last kiss before suddenly disengaging from his arms and running down the hallway to the master bedroom.

When she came out five minutes later, she was wearing a red satin robe and carrying a wrapped gift.

“This is for you, Ben. Merry Christmas!” She handed the gift out to him, suddenly shy.

She watched with trepidation as he took it, tore off the wrapping paper, and opened the box. Inside lay the forest green cable knit wool scarf that she had painstakingly knitted for him in early December. He stared down at it, then lifted his hand to run it over the scarf before pulling it out of the box to hold it up. He still hadn’t looked at her.

“I made it myself. I… I didn’t know if you had anything like it. I know it’s not much, but I thought, maybe, since you’re coming back to Colorado, you’ll need some things for cold weather. But, uh, it’s okay if you already…” Her painful nervous babbling came to a grinding halt as his whiskey eyes flicked up to meet hers.

“Rey, this is the most beautiful gift I’ve ever received. No one has ever made anything for me with their own hands like this before. I love it. I love you,” he said in a low thrum, and a shiver went through her at the intensity in his voice. He pulled something out of his back pocket and held it out to her. “I have something for you, too.”

She reached out a trembling hand to take the box, her gaze never leaving his and she brushed his fingers. She opened the box and looked down to find a beautiful little golden key pendant on a gold chain.

She looked back up to find a smirk on his face. “Because you hold the key to my heart,” he said with a wink. “Here, turn around and let me put it on you.”

She did, and he reached around her with the necklace, and she could feel the warmth of his big body close behind her. The kisses he laid to the nape of her neck as he fastened the clasp were making her swoon all over again.

“There, let me see how it looks.”

As she turned, Rey untied the robe and dropped it to the ground. Underneath was her second present, as much for herself as it was for Ben. She was wearing a red satin mini chemise with sheer lacy cups. Ben spun her around to see criss-cross straps in the back, and a low backside that barely covered her from the top or the bottom. _Thank God I remembered to turn the heater up earlier in the day, or I’d literally be freezing my ass off_, she thought to herself with a laugh. She turned back around and touched the necklace he’d just placed around her neck.

“How does it look?” she asked with a coy look up through her lashes.

He moved all at once, pressing her up against the wall, kissing her like a man possessed. He reached his hands under the hem of the chemise to find - “You’re not wearing any underwear! You naughty girl, what have you been planning?” - as his hands palmed her bare backside to gain more leverage to roll his hips against her center.

“This is the other half of your Christmas present.” She didn’t want all her preparations to go to waste so, although it killed her to put a stop to what he was doing to her here in the hallway, Rey pulled away from him and reached out her hand. “C’mon, I have another surprise for you.”

She pulled him into the bedroom and turned to look at his face as he took in the candles she’d lit all around the room, and the red rose petals on the bed where they’d made love for the first time.

“Merry Christmas, Ben. I love you so much,” she whispered as she walked backwards toward the bed, eyes never leaving his, pulling him down with her.

* * *

The next day, Poe and Kaydel joined Leia, Han, Ben, and Rey to serve meals at the annual Community Christmas Dinner (it was actually lunch) in the nearby city of Cortez. It was nice to give back to the community by serving the elderly, those in need, and just regular people who wanted to be together on Christmas. It made Poe feel like a part of something bigger than himself. And it didn’t hurt that he was doing it alongside Kaydel, whom he’d grown close to over the past week.

After lunch was over, the four young people went to see the latest Star Wars movie, the last in a long franchise spanning over 40 years. Although Poe wouldn’t admit it to anyone else, he really identified with the main character, Kylo, and was glad to see him get his happy ending with Kira, and get to hug his mother in the end as the twin suns of Tatooine set over where the whole saga had started.

And that evening, at the Organa-Solo ranch, when he saw Ben whisper in Rey’s ear and lead her upstairs once again, Poe looked into his heart and realized it felt light. A few minutes later, he went up to embrace Kaydel from behind as she stood at the kitchen counter, press a light kiss to her neck, and whisper in her ear. They left the kitchen together, arms twined around each other, neither one noticing the fond, satisfied smiles on the faces of Han and Leia as they sat on the living room couch in front of a roaring fire, sipping their Christmas Scotch.  
[](https://imgur.com/WTBMsWc)  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 9 will be up tomorrow! Then we only have one chapter to go, I can't believe it! I plan to have it up by Wednesday, or Thursday morning at the very latest.
> 
> The [Cortez Community Christmas Dinner](https://the-journal.com/articles/161214) is a real and wonderful thing.
> 
> I know NOTHING about emo bands, if I have gotten anything wrong about what posters teenaged Ben had up in his room, let me know! 😂
> 
> Inspiration for: the [scarf Rey knitted](https://www.etsy.com/no-en/listing/173732380/gorgeous-cable-knit-wool-scarf-hand); the [Tiffany golden heart key pendant Ben gave her](https://www.tiffany.com/jewelry/necklaces-pendants/tiffany-keys-heart-key-pendant-GRP02493/); and the [red chemise lingerie that Rey wore for him](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072NH3X2X/)


	9. Give him the love of a good family and a woman of his own

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey graduates from college, and Ben has a big surprise planned for her. And a Finnrose wedding!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 8 went up just yesterday! If you happened to miss that, be sure to go back and read it before you read this one.
> 
> Song inspiration is a suggestion from Bonnieswims (thank you!): ["Wild Montana Skies"](https://youtu.be/8RRgIP-0pHk) by our own John Denver once again.💕
> 
> A big thank you once again to sofondabooks for the absolutely invaluable beta! If not for her forcing me once again to write more dialogue, you wouldn't be enjoying gems like "she likes it nice and firm" in this chapter.🤣 Also, she made an ANIMATED moodboard for me, which you can see [HERE](https://i.imgur.com/rnYLill.mp4) \- my very first!
> 
> The idea of having Ben build Rey a tiny house was inspired by lachesisgrimm's new "Ben Solo in a tiny house" fic: ["a shell (a home)"](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21723733/chapters/51819904). (See end notes for the specific inspiration for the actual house he builds in this chapter.)
> 
> OH, I almost forgot - we have a **smut warning** this chapter: you can skip from "Ben didn’t waste a second before following in her wake" to the end of that section.

After the Christmas holidays were over, Rey went back to her Mancos home, while Ben stayed at the Organa-Solo ranch. They both had so much to focus on before the summer: Rey was finishing her final requirements for graduation, and Ben still had a long road of training and rehabilitation ahead if he wanted to be competitive at the summer majors. He hated being apart from Rey like this, but he knew it was for the best that they not distract each other too much as they both worked hard toward their goals. It was just until May, and then… well, Ben had big plans for the summer.

They still saw each other every weekend, since they were only an hour’s drive away. Cliff Palace tours at Mesa Verde resumed in April, and Ben could often be found on Rey’s tours, admiring once again how cute her amazing ass looked in her ranger uniform. Much to the disappointment of her supervisor, Rey had given the park notice that she wouldn’t be continuing past the end of April. She, Finn & Rose all graduated on May 2, and Finn and Rose’s wedding was scheduled for the following weekend. But beyond that, she and Ben had agreed that this would be the beginning of a new phase in their life together—and he was working on a little surprise for her to kick that off.

Construction on the courts and clubhouse—complete with gym, training facilities, and a few dorm rooms—continued apace at the ranch. They planned on constructing a larger dormitory eventually, once they got enough students, but for now the plan was to house students locally as needed. Luke and Han were overseeing all that, while Ben focused on his training with Poe and Luke, which was… going. He veered wildly between frustration, pessimism, confidence, and single-minded intensity.

His saving grace in all this was the surprise he was working on in his spare time: a tiny house being built about 500 feet from the main ranch house, just for him and Rey. Ben had got the idea from Luke, who already lived in another, similar house on the property. He’d researched plans online and consulted with his family, particularly with his mother, to make sure he built something Rey would love.

The house itself was about 500 square feet, not counting an attached porch and greenhouse. That was really a little too large to be considered a true tiny house, but he’d had to make some adjustments for his giant frame. It featured a full-sized range and fridge, opposite a little bar that they could use to eat on. A set of storage-hiding steps led up to a loft bed with windows on each side for a beautiful view of the mountains. Underneath the loft was a small but very functional bathroom with a washer/dryer combo.

But what he was most proud of was the greenhouse. He’d seen Rey’s house plants and small garden at her home with Old Ben, and he couldn’t imagine anything more fitting for her than this room, filled with warmth, sunshine, color, and life. His mother had taken charge of this room, and had already started filling it with flowers and herbs whenever she was home on break from her work in the capital.

Ben heard his mom’s distinct ringtone coming from his phone one day about a month before Rey’s graduation, as he and Luke were working together out on the tennis court during their usual morning training session.

“Let’s take ten, Luke. It’s my mom calling,” he yelled out, walking over to the courtside benches where his things were. He grabbed a towel and slung it around his neck, then picked up the phone.

“Hey, mom, whatcha want?”

“Is that any way to greet your mother, Benjamin?” she huffed out with mock offense, then laughed. “Never mind, I know you’re busy with Luke, but I needed to ask you a few quick questions about the house and the party next weekend.”

“Sure, mom, shoot. Luke and I needed a break anyway.”

“Okay, first of all, Kaydel needs the full names, phone numbers, and email addresses for Rose’s and Finn’s families. She will talk with them and coordinate all the details for the graduation party we’ve been planning.”

“Sure, I’ll get them and forward them to her.”

“Perfect. Then the other thing is the house. While we’ve been stuck here in Denver the past few weeks, Kaydel and I have been doing a lot of shopping at IKEA, and I think we found the perfect bed frame and bedding, as well as a mattress. You said she likes it nice and firm, right?”

“Yes, mom,” he choked out, and trying to keep the snicker out of his voice, but he couldn’t get anything past his mother, as always.

“Oh Ben, honestly, how old are you? Anyway, I’ll have Kaydel send you all the details as soon as we hang up. I’m thinking of a duck down comforter plus a lovely floral duvet cover and rose sheet set that I found.”

“Whatever you think she’ll like is fine, mom.”

“Well, I still want your approval before I go ahead and have it shipped. So everything is still a surprise, right? You haven’t given it away yet? You always were the worst at hiding your feelings. You could never get away with anything when you were a kid, because I could always read your every thought and intention on that face of yours!”

“Yes, mom, it’s still a surprise. She has absolutely no idea,” he groused good-naturedly, rolling his eyes.

“Good! And how’s the timeline? Are we still on schedule to have construction finished by the end of this month?”

“Dad says we’re right on schedule. Hey mom, I just wanted to say thanks. I know you and Kaydel have done a ton of work making it perfect for Rey, and I really appreciate it. I don’t tell you that enough. And I’ll tell Kaydel the same when I talk to her this afternoon.”

“Thank you, Ben, that means a lot to me. But I’m doing it for my wonderful, beautiful daughter, not for you!” She cackled gleefully and then barked out, “Call on the other line, gotta go! Love you! Bye, Ben!” She hung up without giving him a chance to get another word in, leaving him standing there staring at his phone in bemusement.

Later, at lunch, Ben looked over the pictures Kaydel had sent him, and was excited anew over how everything was coming together so perfectly. He could not wait to reveal their home to Rey as a graduation present. His long journey had come full circle and he was almost home—he just needed her by his side where she belonged.

* * *

Rey looked up into the crowd at graduation, trying to find Ben, and waving frantically when she saw him sitting next to Han, Leia, Grandpa, and Finn’s and Rose’s families. Poe, Kaydel, and Luke were back at the ranch house taking care of last-minute preparations for the big graduation party the Organa-Solos were throwing for the three graduates.

After the ceremony, Rey ran up with Finn and Rose to find their families, hugging everyone before going back to burrow into Ben’s side, his arm warm and heavy across her shoulders.

“Are we still on for the party?” She was vibrating like a struck bell with excitement.

“Yes, we are, my love,” Leia assured her. “I’m so proud of you. Of all three of you!” she added as she hugged Finn and Rose in turn. The two of them had accompanied Rey on so many visits to the ranch that and were almost part of the family now. She looked around at everyone. “See you all back at the house in an hour. Bring your stomachs, we have plenty of food!”

On the drive back in Han’s truck, Ben and Rey sat in the back seat alongside Grandpa Ben.

“Hey kid, so what are your plans now? Gonna make an honest man of ol’ Ben here?” Han teased.

“Well, first I need to help Rose make an honest man of Finn next weekend, and then we’ll see,” she quipped right back at him. “Just let me get through this crazy weekend and the next, and Ben and I will talk about where we go from here. Don’t worry, Grandpa,” she said, turning toward the older man next to her and squeezing his left hand, “I won’t go far, no matter what.”

“I know, my sweet girl.”

“And besides, don’t think I haven’t noticed how often Mrs. Kryze from the church has been calling and coming over lately! It’s been a year since her husband died, and I think she has her eye on you.”

“Maybe I’ve got my eye on her, ever thought of that, smart aleck?” He huffed out a laugh, then turned serious. “I’ll always love Ruby, but she’s been gone a while, and you don’t need me anymore, and well… Mrs. Kryze is a lovely woman, and plays a mean hand of bridge! Maybe I’ll let her make an honest man out of me yet,” he said with a wink, eliciting laughs from everyone.

“Seriously, it is feminism you know! It’s a woman’s world now, and we’ve just got to keep them happy, isn’t that right, Ben my boy?” the older man remarked with a flash of humor in his eyes.

“Yes, sir!” Rey could feel the rumble of his chuckle through her side. “Oh, speaking of—Rey, I have something for you.” She moved back from him temporarily as he reached into his back pocket for his wallet, pulling out a folded piece of paper from it. He handed it to her.

“Your first graduation present.”

Rey’s wide eyes looked up into his, then down as she quickly unfolded the paper and scanned its contents.

“Is this what I think it is? An airplane ticket to go with you to Wimbledon?” she said slowly. “I know we’d talked about it, but I wasn’t sure if my presence there would be a distraction.”

He grabbed her hand and kissed it. “You NOT being there would be the real distraction. But are you sure you’re up for going back to England? I know you left it under difficult circumstances.”

“Grandma and Grandpa, and now your family, have given me more home and belonging and love in the last decade than I ever could have imagined. I can’t wait to go and see you play!”

They continued talking all the way home about logistics for the summer, and passports, and what to expect at the tournament. As they pulled up to the ranch house, Rey suddenly remembered something.

“Ben… You said ‘first present.’ What’s my second present?”

He snatched her up in a bridal carry and carried her in the house as she shrieked with laughter. “You’ll just have to wait and see, greedy girl!”

* * *

The party was still in full swing at around 4 pm when Ben pulled Rey aside. The food he’d eaten and wine he’d drunk were sitting a bit heavy in his stomach, his palms were sweating, and his heart was racing as he prepared to show Rey his main surprise.

He and his dad had been working on the house down to the last minute, but it was finally done. The key and “I love you 3000” keychain sat heavy in his pocket as they arrived at the back door of the house. He paused and drew a deep breath, running his hand through his hair, his lips working as he felt temporarily tongue-tied.

“Rey, I have another present for you. It’s just outside. Come on, it’s a couple minutes’ walk from here.”

His heart was struck again by her beauty as she smiled at him with all the brilliance of the waning sun that was shining in low over the mountains and through the windows, gilding her frame. He felt all the weight of the moment as he reached out a hand to her, and she grabbed it readily to follow him.

As they drew closer, Ben had Rey climb up on his back for a piggyback ride and close her eyes. He carried her up to the foot of the porch, and then stopped to let her down slowly.

“Keep your eyes closed, sweetheart, and I’ll guide you the last little way.” He led her up the four small steps to the front door. “Okay, you can open them now.”

She was so cute as her eyes opened slowly, blinking to reorient herself. He saw the moment she realized he was holding out a key to her.

“Ben? What is this?”

“It’s our house. My dad and I, along with my mom and Poe, have worked all spring to build it.” He was holding his breath, waiting for her reaction.

“What?” she gasped out.

“Here.” He pressed the key into her hand. “Go in and take a look.”

She fumbled with the lock a bit and then went in, completely silent as she looked around with wide eyes. Ben was on pins and needles waiting for a verdict, a word, something. She ran her hands along the countertops; she opened doors and peered in; she went upstairs and stared at the bed for a few long moments. Finally she came back down, still not quite meeting his eyes, and stopped right in front of him.

“Rey… What do you think? We just finished it this week, and I was hoping you’d agree to move in here with me. That key is yours, no matter what. If you’re not ready, it’s okay. And we can change anything you want, if there’s something you don’t like! I really don’t want to rush you…”

She finally looked up with shimmering hazel eyes. “Ben,” she breathed, “it’s perfect. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in all my life. You thought of everything! I love it! Yes, I will move in with you, tonight if you want. I can go get my stuff later from your room in the big house, and then worry about packing up the rest of my things this week.”

The sun had gone behind the mountains, casting the house suddenly into a cool semi-darkness.

“On second thought… How can I agree to move in before I know if the bed is comfortable or not? It could be lumpy, or hard, or too small. You never know.” She tapped her finger on her lips in mock consideration, then abruptly turned and ran up the stairs. “Come help me test it out!”

Ben didn’t waste a second before following in her wake. She was standing at the foot of the bed, pulling her dress up over her head, then reaching around to unhook her bra and pull down her panties, tossing them all carelessly to the floor, leaving her totally bare in front of him.

“Get on the bed, Rey. Hands and knees,” he ordered, and she complied readily, back arched and bottom sticking up so enticingly. The contrast between her without a stitch of clothing on while he was still fully dressed, looming over her in a position of dominance, had him so worked up that Ben’s hands were shaking as he unbuckled his belt and opened his pants just enough to pull himself out, pumping his length a few times.

“Please Ben, please, I’m so ready. Don’t tease me!” Her needy words and little wiggling moans drove him wild, and he positioned himself at her entrance and pushed slowly but steadily into her tight warmth. She was so slick already that he bottomed out in one stroke without resistance.

He had to hold still for a moment to keep from finishing before they’d even started. His one thought, before he began thrusting and all rational thought was lost, was that driving home like this into her body, there for the first time in their own home, was the last piece of the puzzle clicking into place. He’d spent a decade wandering in the wilderness, and he was finally, finally home.

* * *

Rey moved in with Ben the night of her graduation, and she spent the next week getting settled in, making multiple trips back to her grandpa’s house to get her things. Luckily it was close, so she didn’t have to move everything all at once. And their house was so small that she had to be discerning in what she brought anyway, which was just as well. Simple living, and all that.

Ben loved going to bed with her every night, and waking her up every morning in mostly the same way he had their first morning together almost 7 months ago: by pulling her leg back over his and entering her from behind, or by pulling her on top of him to let her ride him, or by rolling on top of her to gently make love to her as the sun rose over the mountains to shine through the window and cast her in a brilliant glow.

That Saturday was Finn and Rose’s wedding at St. Columba Catholic Church in Durango, where her devout Vietnamese parents were parishioners. Ben was waiting nervously in a pew next to his parents and Old Ben. Rey was in the wedding party, the “best woman” alongside Rose’s sister Paige as matron of honor, and it was almost time to start.

He heard the music swell to start the ceremony, a beautiful sweeping theme from the Keira Knightley “Pride and Prejudice” adaptation—he knew this because Rey had forced him to watch in one evening a few months ago, saying that it was her favorite movie. Although he might not admit it, Ben had enjoyed the story, and he’d really enjoyed the enthusiastic blow job he’d received after the movie in appreciation.

He smiled to himself at the memory, and then—the procession was starting. The flower girl and ring bearer walked out—cute little Tico cousins—followed by two bridesmaid-groomsman pairs, walking at a slow, stately pace.

And then Rey was coming down the aisle arm-in-arm Paige, wearing a stunning floor-length red dress and carrying a matching bouquet of red roses and white tulips. She was beaming, ethereal, luminous. She smiled at him as she passed by on her way to meet Finn at the front, and at that moment Ben knew he would do anything to have her walking up the aisle in a white wedding dress to meet him, preferably as soon as possible.

The diamond ring he’d already bought her was stored for safekeeping in his parents’ vault, and he would be asking her this summer, one way or another, that much was certain. He just had to figure out the perfect setting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **The final chapter 10 will be up before TROS!** Thank you so much to all of you who've gone on this journey with me: read, left kudos, commented, and encouraged me. I really appreciate it! It has been an amazing 2 years getting to be a part of this community, and I'm feeling nostalgic and bittersweet now that the end is near. Or - maybe not the end, but things will be changing in 5 days, no matter what. But I'll still be around! And I hope you all will be too.
> 
> The inspiration for [the tiny house Ben built for Rey](https://www.curbed.com/2017/10/11/16457790/tiny-house-for-sale-new-porch-greenhouse). This link has tons of pictures of the inside, as well as a video. It is so lovely, although I do have to wonder if Ben Solo would fit in it!🙄 I made the one he built a little larger than the one at this link (500 sq. ft. vs. 325 sq. ft.). So let's just suspend our disbelief and imagine that they designed it with a man of his size in mind!


	10. I'll Stand By You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben competes at Wimbledon 🎾  
Please note the **updated tags**.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Previously on RMH:** Rey graduated from college and moved in with Ben into the tiny house he'd built for her on his parents' property. Ben was putting all his energy into training for the big summer majors, Wimbledon and the US Open.
> 
> Song inspiration is a suggestion from sofondabooks: ["I'll Stand By You"](https://youtu.be/-Y4lYF3Ic_E), as sung by Carrie Underwood.
> 
> A big thank you once again to sofondabooks for the absolutely invaluable beta! You can see the cake mentioned in this chapter, the one Rey makes, in the video, or [find it here](https://twitter.com/nancylovesreylo/status/1236004460213571585?s=20).

The summer came, and with it the big tennis competition season. Ben didn’t bother competing in the French Open that began just a couple of weeks after Finn and Rose’s wedding, because realistically, as an American, he had no real chance there. The Europeans were just too dominant on clay courts.

He spent most of his time training intensively for Wimbledon, the next major, which would begin at the end of June. What little down time he had was spent with Rey: hiking, cooking together, and making love under the stars and on every surface in their little home—and a few in Han and Leia’s. It was a honeymoon of sorts, a liminal state where anything seemed possible, before the hard work of real life had to be faced once more. Ben was so grateful for this time to sink into the land and grow roots here once again.

Rey had started helping Han get the tennis academy off the ground. She had basically taken over all administrative duties, as well as helping with maintenance and overseeing construction crews, and he loved to see her blossoming in the position. She and Han were two peas in a pod, and Ben often looked out from his practice court to see the two of them with their heads together, discussing some issue or another, or striding across the property.

“Hey, kid!” Luke’s voice broke into Ben’s reverie one late afternoon in mid-June as he watched Rey’s exquisite ass as she leaned over to talk to Han through the open passenger-side window of his truck.

“Huh? Oh sorry, Luke, just daydreaming there for a second.” Ben reluctantly pulled his eyes away and silently vowed to get that ass uncovered as soon as he got her alone that evening. He blushed when he turned back and saw the knowing smirk on Luke’s face.

“Ben, I know I’ve been pushing you hard lately, but you’ve taken everything I’ve thrown at you and given back 110%, and I just wanted to say how proud I am of you.”

Luke wrapped him in an unexpected bear hug, which Ben returned awkwardly at first, feeling sweaty and caught off guard. But the warmth of Luke’s unconditional praise and support seeped into his bones, and Ben returned the hug with a earnestness that surprised him.

“We’re flying out next week for Wimbledon,” Luke continued. “and I just want you to remember this, and keep it close to your heart: no matter who you face, no matter how things go, your mother, your father, and I will always be with you. And I know your grandparents are watching from up above, too, and cheering you on. We all love you, kid.” Luke pulled back, giving Ben a final squeeze on his bicep.

Ben reached out to return the squeeze meaningfully, his voice seemingly having deserted him.

“Alright, Ben, enough mushy stuff for today. Why don’t we stop here so my naughty nephew can get on with whatever he’s got planned for that pretty girl I saw him eyeing earlier.” Luke barked out a laugh at Ben’s huff and eye roll. “And speaking of Rey, I know you’ve had a ring bought for months now—what are you waiting for?”

As Ben stalked away in mock disgust, he heard Luke’s voice following him: “A pretty girl like that, smart as a whip, too—someone might snatch her out from under your nose if you don’t hurry up!”

* * *

As the plane touched down in London, Rey’s feelings were a whirlwind that she didn’t know how to interpret. She’d spent the whole flight clutching Ben’s big bicep and talking about her childhood. She and Grandpa had received a call a few years ago that her mother had been found dead of a drug overdose in her London flat. That brought up all the loneliness and uncertainty of a little girl, and the dread and fear of a maturing tween, that had been long buried in the security and love of her Colorado home. And now she was making her way back to where she’d started life, bringing it all churning back to the surface once more.

But Ben was the rock that she clung to in the storm, his massive form providing tangible comfort, his feather kisses to her face and hair melting her anxiety.

She made a quick call to her grandpa as soon as they reached the gate.

“Hey, Grandpa, I just wanted to let you know that we made it safely! I love you and I miss you so much!”

“My sweet girl, I love you so much! Have fun and be sure to enjoy everything to the fullest. Satine and I will be watching for you in Ben’s box every time he plays.”

“And I’ll be waving to you both! I will call you every day, OK? Be good! Love you, bye!” She grabbed her carry-on and then turned to see Ben holding out a hand to her.

“Ready, sweetheart?” His eyes were dark and intense. She reached out to take his hand, feeling a sense of rightness as his big hand closed over hers. They made their way off the plane and into the airport to meet up with Luke, Leia, Han, and Poe, and then out to their rental house in the heart of Wimbledon.

Wimbledon was beautiful, and Rey loved the sightseeing they were able to do in London, making some beautiful new memories to replace the old: whispering to each other across the Whispering Gallery in St Paul’s, taking selfies at the top of the London Eye, and best of all, seeing all the archaeological wonders at the British Museum. Her heart was so full.

Now if only Ben was able to play well, and be content with his performance, then their trip would be complete! Rey would be proud of him no matter what happened.

* * *

Once the tournament started, Ben played well, considering he’d been out of major competition for almost a year, and had had major knee surgery. They’d managed to avoid seeing Snoke or Hux until Ben was scheduled to meet him in the quarterfinals. But as Ben prepared to go out on No. 1 Court, he met Hux coming down the narrow hallway.

“Solo. I can’t believe you’ve made it this far,” the redhead sneered without preamble.

“Nice to see you again too, Hux.” Ben tried to keep the peace as they waited for their names to be announced.

“How’s the training been going out in… where is it again? Montana? Somewhere out in the middle of nowhere. And the knee? I saw you favoring it in the last match you played. Hope it doesn’t blow out on you again!” Hux’s posh, BBC-English-accented voice dripped with malice.

Ben was never so happy to hear his name called and get out on court, saving him the trouble of replying. To tell the truth, his knee was feeling a little weak, as if one wrong move could send him crashing to the ground all over again. He’d played a tough 5-set match in the previous Round of 16, and he didn’t feel fully recovered.

As he walked out onto the storied grass courts and looked around, waving to the crowd, his eye caught Snoke’s. The older man’s venomous gaze brought up all the years of verbal and physical abuse that had beaten Ben down. The world suddenly seemed to go silent, the cheers of the crowd fading as a mountainous weight of fatigue descended on him, making his muscles sluggish and brain foggy.

He looked desperately around for Rey and his family, finally locating them in his box on the other side. They were on their feet, cheering and clapping and yelling. His vertically-challenged mom was standing on her seat, Poe holding onto her for stability as she waved frantically and screamed his name. Ben caught Rey’s eye, and the love and excitement he could see shining there, even from so far away, went a long way toward rekindling his inner fire.

His gaze then fell on Luke, who was standing very still in a firm stance, hands clasped in front of him, gaze calm and immovable as granite. 

The match began, and while Ben played well, the miasma of Snoke’s malice, combined with Ben’s very real fatigue and fear of re-injuring his knee, were enough to bring him down in the end. He won the second set 6-4 after losing the first 5-7. But then when Hux won the third set tie-break, Ben felt his mental game collapse and along it with his energy, and Hux won the fourth set 6-2 to take the match.

He went up to the net to shake Hux’s hand before shaking the referee’s.

“Better luck next time, Solo—if you ever make it this far again.” Hux squeezed his hand as tightly as he could get away, and Ben caught the predatory, triumphant gaze of Snoke for an interminable second before turning decisively away and toward his own box.

* * *

Ben was disappointed after Wimbledon—of course he was. Rey made it her mission to encourage him and pamper him, cooking him all his favorite meals and treats, giving him massages, and telling him how proud she was of him.

She thought he really had a shot back at the US Open this year—after all, he’d made it to the final there last year. He was the home-crowd favorite. Poe said his knee was 100%. And Luke assured her that Ben was truly playing his best tennis. He just had to believe in himself! Mental fortitude in tennis was as important as physical toughness. When it was just you out there against an opponent, sometimes for many grueling hours, it often came down to which man had the greater will to win.

She wished she could do more, but she seemed to have picked up a bug or something after their trip to the UK. She was frequently nauseated and tired, and smells sometimes bothered her excessively. But she tried not to let Ben see, as he needed to focus on his training. So she went to Leia.

“When was your last period, Rey, dear?” Leia immediately asked when Rey told her how she’d been feeling.

Rey had been on the extended-cycle pill for a few years now, and so her periods only came about once every 3 months. But in the confusion of the last few months, starting from her graduation, she had sometimes forgotten to take a pill here and there, or had taken it in the evening instead of the morning, as was her habit.

It was as if the scales had suddenly fallen from her eyes and the truth hit her in the stomach, making her gasp: she hadn’t had a period since mid-April, and it was now the beginning of August. And the symptoms fit. Her ears rang, and she groped for the back of a nearby chair.

“Oh Leia! What if…” She put a trembling hand to her mouth, looking at Ben’s mother with wide eyes, unsure how she might feel about this.

Leia’s eyes were misty as she reached out to wrap Rey in a strong hug, swaying them both back and forth a few times before saying, “Let’s go over to Walgreens and see if we can’t find out.”

They got in the car and drove in silence for a few minutes before Leia began, “You know, Rey, Ben was an ‘oopsie’ baby too. My parents could have killed me. Han and I had to get married in a hurry. You’re lucky, these days the world has changed so much, and there’s no pressure on you like that.” She reached over to pat Rey’s leg. “I don’t talk much about feelings, but I hope you know how much I love you, how much we all love you. We’re thrilled to have you as a part of our family and as Ben’s partner in life. And we will love on any baby of yours and Ben’s, whenever the two of you are ready to start a family.”

Rey grabbed her hand and squeezed it wordlessly, tears beginning to slip down her cheeks. They drove the last few minutes in silence to Walgreens, where they bought the test and brought it back home.

Emerging from the bathroom after peeing on the little stick, Rey was shaking all over as she brought it over to Leia to have her watch for the two lines to appear—or not. Rey herself couldn’t bear to look, she just kept pacing restlessly around the room, her mind an absolute whirl.

“Rey… Do you want to come look?” Leia called out after a few minutes.

“Yes - no - I don’t know. No, just tell me!” Rey wailed.

Leia sat the test down and walked over to Rey, putting both arms around her and laying her head on Rey’s shoulder. “You’re pregnant.”

* * *

A week later, Ben came home to find Rey working in the kitchen, decorating a cake, which she quickly put a box over. Something in her manner seemed off, a little frantic and disjointed. When he went over to kiss her, she wouldn’t meet his eye.

“Rey, is everything okay? Are you feeling alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine, just busy trying to finish up this cake! Why don’t you go shower and get ready, and then I’ll be all set.”

Ben gave another curious glance towards the cake. “What’s that for? Is it a special occasion?”

Rey finally turned to face him fully and threw her arms around his chest. “I love you so much, Ben!” She beamed up at him with that big dimpled smile he loved so much, chin on his chest. “Now get in there and shower, you smell!”

“Why don’t you join me?” He moved backwards, hands catching on hers and tugging. “I know you love it when I’m sweaty.”

Ben dropped her hands and moved back into her space, pushing her back against the kitchen counter and kissing a line up the column of her throat to her ear. He reached behind her to pull her hair out of its ponytail, then slid his hands down her back to cup her bottom, pulling her flush against him. Her head lolled back, and the moan she let out was all he needed to know he had won this round.

His hands went up to the waistband of her shorts to pull them down her legs, along with her underwear. He wasted no time in pushing a finger into her, finding her wet and ready. After a few minutes of this, Rey’s hands had become almost frantic all over his body, her kisses hard and bruising.

She pulled back, panting. “Pants off, couch, now!” Ben almost tripped in his haste to comply. Rey straddled him and immediately sank down onto him, riding him to within an inch of his life.

After they’d both come down from their highs, Rey clung to him, burying her face in his neck for a moment before pulling off to go pee quickly before shooing him into the bathroom to wash up. Ben knew he had a goofy smile on his face for the whole shower, but he couldn’t seem to help himself.

He came out to find Rey at the kitchen counter, in front of the cake which was still hidden under a box.

“So what’s the cake for?”

She slowly slid the box off, eyes darting to his. He walked over and finally, really looked at the cake. It was white, with pink and blue dots of varying sizes all over it, some of which were decorated with baby bottles, booties and onesies. He read the words on it, then turned to find Rey studying his face intently.

“‘Coming February 2021?’ Who’s this for? Is somebody having a baby?” Rey just stared at him with a burgeoning grin. “Wait - what - you - how - you’re - you’re pregnant?”

Rey laughed, eyes shimmering, and nodded. “You don’t mind too much, do you? Your mom took me to the doctor this morning, and they said I’m about 12 weeks along.”

“How long have you known? How did this happen?” Ben was still trying to wrap his head around this, the last thing he ever expected to hear.

“I found out about a week ago. Your mom and I went and got a pregnancy test. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, Ben! Don’t be mad at me.” She buried her forehead in his chest, face down, and continued with a muffled voice, “I wanted to wait until it was sure to tell you. And I don’t know, it seemed like something I wanted to keep close to my heart for just a bit, a girls’ secret between me and your mom. It was a shock for me too! It took some time to wrap my head around.”

He tilted her head up with a finger under your chin. “Rey, I’m so, so happy, as long as this is what you want. But how did it happen? You were on the Pill.”

“I’ve been really irregular about taking it lately, and the doctor said I must have had breakthrough ovulation.” She buried her face in his chest again. “I’m so sorry, Ben! I was careless, I know this isn’t the ideal time. The babies are due in February.” 

Ben’s heart felt like it would burst as he wrapped his arms tight around Rey, showering her face and hair with kisses. He was holding his whole world right here, in his arms. Pulling back a bit, he reached down to cover her lower abdomen with his palm.

“Sweetheart, I love you and this baby more than anything in the world, and I’m so excited to start a family with you.” Ben reached up to cup her face in his hands, then froze. “Wait a minute… babies? What did you mean by ‘babies’?!”

“Ben… I don’t know how to tell you this… They said it runs in the family.” She hesitated, biting her lip. “We’re having twins!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Wimbledon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Championships,_Wimbledon) \- the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world. It's the only one played on grass.
> 
> **Chapter 11 is 90% written and will be up on Tuesday!** It is absolutely, positively the final chapter. Sorry for the long wait, everyone! As you can tell by my last post date (Dec. 14th), TROS absolutely upended my plans for this story, and in fact my entire life. ::sigh:: But I'm back!


	11. Let Me Always Be With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The end ... or the beginning of a lifetime together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We return once again, at the end, to our beloved John Denver and his classic "Annie's Song." Here's [the original](https://youtu.be/RNOTF-znQyw), and [here's a little something I made just for this project](https://soundcloud.com/nancy-tantzen-wang/annies-song). Yes, this is me playing the piano and singing the little bit of the song that Ben sang to Rey back in Chapter 5.
> 
> The biggest, hugest thanks to Sofondabooks, who has truly been invaluable in this whole project from start to finish. From insightful suggestions that made the story better, to moodboards and videos, she has done it all, and I'm really so, so grateful!
> 
> Ben's path to the US Open final here is explicitly modeled on Roger Federer's path to victory in the 2017 Australian Open. You can see a [screenshot of all his matches during that tournament here](https://i.imgur.com/L3PhRIk.png), or [visit Wikipedia to read about it](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2017_Australian_Open_%E2%80%93_Men%27s_singles_final). I lifted some descriptions of the final from Wikipedia fairly verbatim, so, uh, CREDIT to the crowdsourcing geniuses there!
> 
> OH, a relevant tidbit - for those of you who don't know, Roger Federer and his wife Mirka have not one, but TWO sets of twins! The first pair are girls, and the second set are boys. I swear, Roger truly lives the most charmed life imaginable. 
> 
> This is my first completed multi-chapter work, which I'm really proud of! Thank you SO MUCH to all of you who've read and commented and supported my fairly silly fluff piece.

Within a week, Rey found herself on another plane, this time to New York City, home of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and the US Open tournament, the last major tennis tournament in the calendar year. This was where Ben had torn his ACL in the final last year, leading him on a journey of self-discovery back home that had brought him to her.

She couldn’t help but have a special fondness for this place, as well as a great deal of hope that this was Ben’s time, his place, his moment. She knew it was silly, but the babies seemed like a symbol of rebirth, new life, and new beginnings—a good omen if ever there was one.

Plus, her first trimester morning sickness and tiredness were over, and Rey felt a bloom of health, a fullness in her features and ripeness in her body, that she’d never experienced before. Her stomach was definitely growing to accommodate the two babies in there, but it wasn’t big enough yet to really impede her from taking advantage of the surge in her sex drive, another side benefit of the second trimester of pregnancy that she was enjoying to the fullest.

Ben played well the entire tournament, seeming re-energized and more focused than she’d ever seen him. After a shaky first round, he got through pretty easily except for tough 5-setters in the fourth round and the semi-final. But got through he did, all the way to a repeat appearance in the final for the second year in a row.

And he’d be facing Hux once again, for the second tournament in a row. As Rey made her way to Ben’s players box in Arthur Ashe Stadium with Luke, Leia, Han, Poe, and Kaydel, her stomach was in nervous knots.

* * *

Ben's feelings as he waited to go out once again into Arthur Ashe Stadium were surprisingly calm, considering. He felt that flow state that came on rare occasions when mind, body, time, and place all converged in just the right way. He’d faced Hux and Snoke once before and lost, and lived, so he wasn’t afraid of that anymore. And no matter what happened here, he had a thriving tennis academy back home, a family who loved him, and the woman of his dreams who was carrying their babies. Who he hoped would agree to be his wife today. He wanted the whole world to know how much he loved her.

He walked out to the deafening cheers of the crowd. As he waved up into the stands, he quickly found his box and blew a kiss to Rey, who mimed catching it and pressing it to her cheek. Ben and Hux began warming up, trading balls back and forth for five minutes before time was called, and the match began.

Ben won the first set 6–4 after breaking Hux in the seventh game. Hux won the second set 6–3 where he broke Ben twice, but Ben was only able to get one of those breaks back. The start of the third set saw a crucial momentum swing, where Ben saved three break points in his opening service game, all of which were saved by aces. After holding his serve, Ben broke Hux twice to take the set 6–1. The fourth set was won by Hux 6–3, and so it came down to a fifth set.

The fifth set started badly for Ben: he felt his legs cramping up, and fatigue setting in. When Hux broke his serve in the first game and took a 3–1 lead, Ben could feel the match slipping inexorably away from him.

As they sat for a quick rest and changeover, the roar of the crowd faded into background noise as he looked up at his box. Luke, his face as calm and imperturbable as always, gave him courage. His parents, clapping and cheering with abandon, gave him energy. Poe and Kaydel, arms around each other, gave him focus. And Rey, her heart shining in her eyes with their babies nestled under her heart, gave him love.

Ben went out with renewed determination and broke Hux’s serve to level the set at 3–3. After holding serve, he once again broke Hux’s service game to take the lead 5–3. Now he was serving for the match.

After losing the first few points on his serve, Ben was in a bad position at 15–40, but he rallied to bring himself to his first championship point, which he lost. On the second championship point, with Hux’s return hurtling his way, Ben had a vision of where this ball would go, as sure and clear as if he were seeing the future. He moved around to hit a forehand winner straight down the line, just clipping the line of the alley on the deuce side.

Everyone started to cheer, before Hux raised his hand to challenge the call.

From the referee: “Quiet, please, quiet everyone. Mr. Hux is challenging the call. The ball was called in.”

The silence in the huge stadium was weighty and deafening. Ben looked up to his box to see them all watching the screen except for Rey, who was watching him with huge eyes and hands covering her mouth. Hawk-Eye showed its simulation of the ball flying over the net and landing, just clipping the line by a centimeter.

“The ball was in. Game, set, and match to Mr. Solo.”

The crowd erupted into cheers, and Ben fell on his back for a few seconds before rolling over to kiss the court. He stood up, took his racket in his hand and pumped both arms in victory, acknowledging the crowd. He then went up to the net to shake Hux’s hand before they both turned to shake the referee’s hand. If he felt a thrill of joy at catching a glimpse of Snoke’s sour face, then it was just icing on the cake.

Ben waved to the crowd once more and then ran up to his box. He went first to Rey, giving her a prolonged kiss that had everyone in the stadium cheering and laughing. He then hugged his team, discreetly pocketing the little black box that Poe passed to him. He went back down to sit while the court was prepared for the trophy ceremony, his knee shaking continuously with all the nervous energy pouring off him.

USTA President Mon Mothma and other officials presented the runner-up trophy to Hux, who gave a barely gracious speech.

“And now the champion of the 2020 US Open, Ben Solo!” The crowd erupted in deafening cheers. “Welcome back. You left the final last year with a devastating injury. We spoke at the beginning of this tournament, and I have to say your expectations were measured, cautiously optimistic. And now you’re standing here as champion. To what do you attribute your amazing recovery and comeback over the past year?”

Ben looked up at his box: his mom, dad, and Rey all had their arms wrapped tightly around each other, eyes bright. Luke finally had a smile on his face and looked relaxed. And Poe and Kaydel, the only ones who knew what Ben had planned, were watching him intently.

“First of all, I’ve got to give so much credit to my team and my family. They’ve been there for me this past year in a way I never imagined possible, and I am so, so grateful. This absolutely would not have been possible without them. I love you guys!” Ben paused, gathering his courage. This was the big moment–he wanted to make it perfect for Rey.

“And most importantly, my girlfriend Rey.” Ben turned to face Rey fully. “Rey, my injury here on this court one year ago started me on the path that led me to you. And now that I’m back here on this court once again, it seems fitting to ask you”–here Ben knelt down and pulled out the ring box, opening it and holding it up to her like a fit offering to the queen of his life–“Rey Kenobi, I love you with all my heart. Will you marry me?”

Rey stood frozen for a few seconds in which Ben saw his life flash before her eyes. Then she began to sob, before groping blindly toward the exit of the box, trying to make her way out. Poe took her arm and escorted her down to the court, where she ran to Ben and flung herself into his arms, shoulders still heaving with sobs.

“Ben, Ben, Ben,” she cried into his neck, and Ben felt tears falling down his cheeks too.

Finally, President Mothma picked up the microphone that Ben had dropped, forgotten when Rey had rushed out.

“So… Is that a yes, then?” she said before holding the microphone out to Rey, who choked out, “YES!” Ben slid the ring onto her finger, to the deafening cheers of the crowd.

* * *

Rey and Ben were married at his parents’ ranch on Monday, October 12th, a year to the day after the fateful day they met in Mesa Verde. Luke officiated. The bride, who was having twin girls, was glowing, the groom was grinning like a fool, and the parents of the bride sat contentedly, arms around each other, watching the newly-wed couple dance into the night.

“Well, we did it, Princess. We did good.” Han kissed his wife of 30-plus years with a love that had only grown as they’d shared the ups and downs of life together. He moved down to press kisses to the column of her neck, his hand dipping under the hem of her skirt under the cover of the tablecloth to caress her upper thigh. “Now what do you say we skip out early on this party and go make some memories of our own?”

Leia let her fond gaze rest for a few moments more on Ben and Rey before standing up and reaching for Han with a smirk. “Let’s go, old man. See if you can keep up!”

* * *

**  
_Three and a Half Years Later_  
**

Rey stood gazing up at the ancient dwellings of Cliff Palace while Ben chased after their girls, Ruby and Charlotte. They’d been waiting for the girls to get old enough to navigate the ladders and uneven terrain (mostly) on their own before visiting the site with them. The first time they’d been here, it was Ben who had mobility issues because of his bad knee. Now, the girls and he were scampering about the site, while Rey lumbered behind them, huffing and puffing with her rapidly growing belly.

Rey could not _believe_ she was having twins again, this time twin boys. What were the odds?

She reflected on all that had changed since they first met at this site four and a half years ago.

Ben had been doing well professionally, having won all of the major titles except the French at one point or another over the years. He was home for now, gearing up for another summer competition season in which he hoped to win the French now that the longtime favorite, Rafael Nadal, was out with an injury.

Their tennis academy was thriving as well. Rey loved working there as the chief operating officer, meeting all the students and making sure everyone’s needs were taken care of. It allowed her to be around Ben and the girls all day. They’d all moved into the big house after the girls were born, where Nana and Papa spoiled the girls mercilessly, but Ben and Rey kept the tiny house that Ben had built as their getaway, their place to reconnect.

Ben wandered over to where she was standing, holding the girls, one in each arm. Rey smiled in appreciation of his big, strong arms that held them all up. The girls screeched in delight and clutched onto him as he leaned over to kiss her.

“Girls, did you know I met Mama here before you were born, when she took me on a tour of this very same place? I thought she was the prettiest girl I’d ever seen, and I still do! What do you think, girls? Is your mama the prettiest mama in the whole wide world?”

“Yes!” they squealed in unison, having played this game many times before.

Ben set them down on the ground and reached to take Charlotte’s hand, while Rey took Ruby’s. He smiled down and Rey and said, “Let’s go home.”

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading!!  
  
My other stories:  
[Dog Days of Summer](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20061766/chapters/47512132), in which veterinary student Rey supplements her scholarships with a side business walking dogs. When there's a mixup with the scheduling of her newest client Buster, Rey walks in and gets an eyeful of Buster's owner instead.
> 
> [The Call of the Light](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20527862/chapters/48722465) by [Moongrim](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moongrim/), an amazing post-TLJ Episode IX fic which I helped to translate from French. ** This is now COMPLETE!**
> 
> [Bon Appetit!](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18595489) by [TazWren](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TazWren/pseuds/TazWren) and [Littlemistake](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Littlemistake/pseuds/Littlemistake). I consulted on cooking and provided the recipes for shrimp etouffee, vinaigrette, and Bananas Foster😍


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